Record snows may still clog driveways and carpet lawns with ice but the spring real estate market is kicking off across the country earlier than normal as buyers push to make the April 30 tax credit deadline.
It’s worth $8,000 to first-time buyers and $6,500 to existing owners to get a contract on a new home within the next 42 days. With rates around five percent, plentiful inventories of homes for sale, record selections of discounted distress sale properties and prices at their lowest levels in nearly a decade, more and more buyers are deciding the time has come to act.
Some observers are concerned the pool of first-time buyers is largely depleted. Others say that the tax credit for existing buyers is not an adequate incentive. However, initial reports around nation over the February Presidents’ holiday-traditionally the first weekend in the annual spring real estate market-suggest that the tax credits are inciting an early start to the buying season.
Realty offices from Rochester, New York to Ventura, California report unusually large numbers of calls from prospective buyers, searches of online listings and applications to get pre-qualified for financing.
In Rochester, activity began with the new year, five weeks early.
“I was shocked to see how many leads are coming in for this time of year,” said Karen Leonardi, vice president of corporate and consumer affairs at Nothangle Realtors. “These are definitely numbers we typically would see in the spring, not in January.”
Much of the buying activity is in the $85,000 to $150,000 range. The competition for homes in that price range in good condition is fierce because first-time homebuyers are out in force.
