The Real Estate Market Goes Up and Down, Up and Down, Up and Down...

Although to varying degrees across the country, in general, the real estate market has not done well over the past few years. Suze Orman has been saying that 2012 would be "rock bottom," the worst we've seen in a while, but that things should begin improving after that. As in, now. The Commerce department recently said that new, single-family home sales rose 4.4% in November 2012. That's the best it's been in 2 and 1/2 years. Prices seem to be moving fastest out west. 

Unfortunately for me, I don't live out west. So I'm anxiously watching for news that the real estate market is improving, especially in my area. I don't think the Raleigh area was hit as hard as some other places in the country, but I've watched homes in my neighborhood take forever to sell, and then not at nearly the price it would have gotten several years ago. However, in 2011, home values in Raleigh and Cary appreciated about 7% more than the previous year. The number of active home lists has dropped 12% from last month, which I personally take to be a good sign. Less supply, better demand. I'm pretty sure that's how it's supposed to go.

And that's what I'm counting on. I'm making tentative plans to sell my house in the Spring, probably in May. Five or six years ago, my house would have sold for more than it probably will now, or even this Spring. But I've been getting ready for a while, and the house is probably about as good as it's going to get. The list of projects from the past year or two is a long one: new hardwood floors, new countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms, new bathroom and kitchen faucets and lights, refinishing the back deck, new energy-efficient windows,  and a fresh paint job throughout the house. Other than a few small things that I'll work to get done in April (and if you know me at all, you know that means "hire someone to get done"), we're ready to go. Unless something happens to change things, the plan right now is to interview real estate agents in April and do whatever they recommend still needs doing around the house (I don't really need to repeat that that means hire someone, do I?), and then list the house for sale in May. I'll cross my fingers that it sells relatively quickly, at which time I'll rent in Raleigh (close to work) for a while until I decide what I want in a new home. This will likely be a condo with a fantastic homeowner's association that allows at least outdoor maintenance to be a thing of the past. Or, it would be, if I actually did any.

I've always watched the house sales in my neighborhood, but I've kept an especially close eye on them of late. The house next door to me, which had been most recently owned by a real-estate agent who had been renting it out but had decided to sell, sold within three months. Woo hoo! Good news for Tracy. A house around the corner has been listed as a short sale, and six months later, does not appear to have gotten any interest, despite a ridiculously low price. Not such good news for Tracy. There are two neighborhoods up the street that developers started building about six or seven years ago then came to a screeching halt as the economy went bad. Both have started building again, though selling at lower prices than originally advertised. I used to read palms, but I cannot read crystal balls, so any prediction I might make would be a guess. I am hopeful that things are starting to improve, and even though I might not get as much as I might have at one point, I'll get a decent price for my house in a reasonable amount of time.

I watch way too much House Hunters, so I have a lot of ideas about how this should go. A friend has already given me a sugar cookie scented candle perfect for enticing buyers into my house. I'm clearing out anything that could be termed clutter, unless, of course, it's something I might need later and couldn't possibly replace. I'm rearranging some pieces of furniture to show off the house's best features. I've been in this house for almost thirteen years, and it's a little uncomfortable to think about leaving it, but it's time. 

Do you happen to know a real estate agent?