Dear Maureen and Antoinette,

I have owned my house for over 25 years and would like to sell and downsize into a smaller home but listening to the news I wonder if it’s still a good time to sell?

Donald R.

Hi Donald, Thanks for your great question! We have been hearing this question a lot from our clients and we are happy to share the current San Diego real estate market facts with you.

The media has recently publicized a number of reports on the current housing market and how it is shifting. Often times those reports are based on national statistics and do not take into account our specific San Diego housing market. We believe the only data a home owner should pay attention to is the information on their hyper-local market, as that is where they will find statistics that will affect their home sale. National statistics and percentages often do not reflect what is happening in America’s Finest City.

The reports you are referring to may include the news about increased mortgage interest rates and a potential real estate market slow down. Interest rates have increased since the beginning of the year, however we are finding many buyers are willing to move forward with a purchase sometimes using variable rate financing (a 10-1 ARM, for example) or by locking in a fixed rate mortgage with a plan to refinance in the future. We are seeing fewer offers on properties than we were seeing earlier in the year, when many homes received a double-digit number of offers within the first few days of going on the market. However here in San Diego County and specifically the metro area of San Diego, we are still experiencing strong demand from buyers with many homes still receiving multiple offers. So the short answer to your question is YES it is still a good time to sell your home!

The current inventory in San Diego County is still very low— down approximately 11% compared with last year’s supply level. It is our advice to sellers that they work together with a trusted real estate professional that is experienced in listing and selling homes in their specific area. If you would like to discuss the home selling process further, please reach out to us. We would be happy to give you additional information reflecting the up-to-the-minute data that will help you make an informed decision on the timing of selling your home.

If you have real estate related questions that you would like us to answer in this monthly column, please email us at [email protected].