Gleanings from The Wall Street Journal

As I write this post, the Schulte gang is enjoying a relaxing Friday night at home while glued to the fantastic Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games. What a beautiful celebration! I haven't spotted the United States delegation yet, and I'm anxious to see them march into the stadium.
For the next couple of weeks, the world seems on a higher plane, as we all watch these super athletes compete. The world does seem to come together in peace for a short while, at least.

Back to the Wall Street Journal and this week's article on housing. The Journal's quarterly survey of housing data in 28 major metropolitan areas showed that the supply of homes listed for sale DECLINED from a year earlier in 19 of them! Fortunately for us, Atlanta is one of those 19 cities. Even better is the news that Atlanta's employment outlook is Strong. People are still relocating to the Atlanta metro area for new jobs and job transfers, and that fact has a definite positive impact on our local housing market.

These numbers would probably be even more positive, but many potential buyers remain on the sidelines, because in the new, more stringent mortgage environment, many of them no longer qualify for loans. They are busy cleaning up their credit and saving for a down payment, and those delays are slowing sales. Housing markets are considered balanced when there are about 6 months worth of homes for sale. Most cities are sitting on a much larger supply.
Atlanta, this article reports, has 13.4 months worth of homes to sell. Chicago has 15.4, Detroit has 17.9, and Orlando has 21 months of homes on the market. That, of course, does not promote any sense of urgency in buyers.

As we've been saying, it is a great time to buy, as long as your time frame is longer than 2 years.
Your negotiating power is greater now than it has been in years, and as the numbers indicate, there are lots of homes to choose from!

If you have any questions about buying or selling property in the North Fulton area, I would love to help!

Meanwhile, be sure to take time to sit back and enjoy this infrequent, very special treat- The Summer Olympics.

Linda