The past few months have been tough on buyers here in Orange County, as the overall inventory of homes has suffered 
from a dramatic drop, while the demand remains steady. This makes the competition fierce and it's a great time to sell your home.
Compared to last summer, there are now half as many homes available on the market, yet the same number of homes are being purchased at the same average cost. That means it's twice as easy to sell now as it was a year ago!
There's been a strange misconception that the current real estate market is bad because of a increase in the sale of bank-owned homes. The major thought is that these are driving the prices down, and that would be the case if there was a lot of competition. Because of this fear, potential sellers aren't listing their properties and the lack of inventory is actually causing real estate values to slowly rise.
The other main factor driving this market is extremely low interest rates. A lot of buyers are looking to invest at the moment because it’s a great time to secure good mortgage rates. With the increase of buyer interest but the decrease of homes, it hasn't been this easy to sell a home in several years. In fact, the last time the market was this favorable to sellers was in 2005.
While it's predicted that this sellers market will remain for the next few months, it won't last forever. The distressed properties that caused this market shift are being sold off and there are fewer foreclosures and short sales available every single week. This means that we're going to see a shift back towards a more balanced market, with stiffer competition for sellers.
A competitively-priced home is likely to be sold quite quickly in the current market, whereas the same home at the same price will probably have a much harder time of being sold in a few months. If you were thinking about selling your home within the next few years, this is a good time to consider your options and take advantage of a unique opportunity.
