Clicky

Where Did All the Multiple Offers Come From?

multiple-bids-on-a-house-graphic

It's as if a switch flipped somewhere in the last few weeks.

Once, early this year, the local real estate market was facing an uncertain rollout. 

Buyers knew prices had come down, and expected/wanted to watch that trend continue a bit further before making a move.

Sellers came to market with trepidation.

Now, not so much.

Now, we're seeing multiple offers in lots of situations across Manhattan Beach, the South Bay and the greater LA area.

The Edge office's two most recent listings (in South Redondo and West LA) have drawn 10 (!) and 4 offers, respectively.

Wherever we have been involved with active buyers in the South Bay, writing offers on properties, there are now commonly at least 5 offers in the mix. This has been the case in Manhattan and Redondo Beach, as well as Palos Verdes.

This is especially true at prices from $1.7M to $2.5M. The "$2 million-ish price point." 

There are a few apparent explanations for why the clouds seem to have lifted:

1) Seasonality is most obvious. This is the time of year when more homes transact than any other time of year. The market was going to heat up.

2) End of price declines is another factor. You can pull up data for almost any proposition, but right now it's hard to support the idea that prices continue to drop, after last year's mortgage rate hikes stung the market and undercut prices. Most importantly, today's buyers don't expect price drops now.

3) Very low inventory both slams the brakes on price declines and forces competition for the available homes on the market. Multiple offers and sales over asking price result.

4) Stabilized interest rates help as well. Ask anyone, a mid-to-high 5's interest rate, like what's currently available, is fantastic compared to almost any other time in the last 30 years. The only caveat is that today's rates are significantly higher than the 3%-ish rates offered in 2021-22.

5) Pent-up demand may sound trite, but it's obviously at work today as more buyers chase fewer homes. Lots of buyers put plans on hold last year. Now some are back, joining a crop of buyers for whom the "right time" – or need – just arrived this year.

The transition from a cautious-to-pessimistic market vibe to one that's competitive and sometimes "crazy" again came quickly.

Is it possible that sellers are noticing, too?

We're seeing a small flood of new listings. In just 7 days, Manhattan Beach saw 15 new properties come to market. (We'll go through them in more detail tomorrow.)

There's usually a longer lead time to listing a home, so today's sellers typically made a decision to sell before the market was this hot. But certainly the state of the market over the last few weeks did not serve as a deterrent.

Welcome to Spring 2023.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We mentioned our Edge team's listings. Have a look at those two that have recently received multiple offers:

114 Via Monte D

114 Via Monte D'Oro, Hollywood Riviera / Redondo Beach

Listed at $1.985M, received 10 offers. You might not quite believe where the price ended up. (We've got to hold our tongues till it closes.)

3541-tilden-ave-kitchen 

 3541 Tilden is our listing in Westside Village, asking $1.825M. There are 4 offers in at this time.

 


Please see our blog disclaimer.

Listings presented above are supplied via the MLS and are brokered by a variety of agents and firms, not Dave Fratello or Edge Real Estate Agency, unless so stated with the listing. Images and links to properties above lead to a full MLS display of information, including home details, lot size, all photos, and listing broker and agent information and contact information.

Based on information from California Regional Multiple Listing Service, Inc. as of March 28th, 2024 at 1:45pm PDT. This information is for your personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties you may be interested in purchasing. Display of MLS data is usually deemed reliable but is NOT guaranteed accurate by the MLS. Buyers are responsible for verifying the accuracy of all information and should investigate the data themselves or retain appropriate professionals. Information from sources other than the Listing Agent may have been included in the MLS data. Unless otherwise specified in writing, Broker/Agent has not and will not verify any information obtained from other sources. The Broker/Agent providing the information contained herein may or may not have been the Listing and/or Selling Agent.