A Bike Ride Leads to a Startling Discovery

I just recently returned from my annual pilgrimage to Rangeley, Maine with my lovely wife, Marie, and our two boys, Zach and Chris.  We had a wonderful time.  While there, I love to ride my bike or get into my car and look at properties.  It is just something I enjoy doing.  I must have done it at least 3 times while I was in Rangeley.

One of the things I discovered on several of my bike rides was the number of properties that were on the market.  I do not think I had ever seen so many active properties for sale.  I spoke to one agent and he told me that he had 115 listings.  That is just one agent in one office.  Stunning!!  My jaw hit the floor.

I began to wonder if things in Sarasota were going to look as bleak as it looked in Rangeley when I got home.  So, upon returning to Sarasota, I got on my bike and started doing my daily ride from my house down to the end of Siesta Key.  The last time I had taken my bike ride on that route was early July.....so nearly a month had gone by since my last ride.  I was stunned.  I could not believe how many real estate signs said, "Pending" or "Sold". I must have seen 10 or eleven signs that reflected a change status on property signs.

Upon getting home from my ride, I visited a house down the street that was having a garage sale.  I asked the tenant if they were moving.  She said the new owner wanted them to stay.  I asked, "Did you just sell the house?"  She informed me that her previous owner had put out a sign and sold the house in 3 hours.  I looked out on Webber Street and noticed that several new houses on the market were already pending.  To me, those would be the last houses selling with all the inventory on the market.

The market has changed.  We are in a different place than we were in 12 months ago.  The numbers released by the Sarasota Association of Realtors reflect a market that is red hot.  We almost topped 1,000 closings again for the month.

If you are thinking about buying, don't wait.  Most people are 6 months behind where the market really is.  So, if you think it is at the bottom now, the bottom was probably 6 months ago and is now on the upswing.  If you don't believe me, get out on your bike and try to find some properties that are not pending.