…or how long it will take to sell all the homes currently for sale in Wisconsin Rapids…
I don’t like to make predictions. At some point in every listing presentation, usually after we start to discuss a listing price, a home owner will ask how long it will take to sell their home. And that’s an answer I really don’t have.
I could guess. But I always feel conflicted because in the end, the buyer will control how long the home is for sale.
I know what you’re thinking… I bet it’s something along the line of: Really?!?! The buyer has the last say in how long a home is for sale… I know, I know.
How about if I take out ‘buyer’ and insert ‘market’:
The market controls how long a home is for sale.
Does that make more sense?
But if I had to give you one piece of data to help answer your “how long” question, it would be the Absorption Rate. Remember, data never lies…
What exactly is the Absorption Rate?
The absorption rate is the calculation of how long it will take for all homes on the market in Wisconsin Rapids to be sold, or absorbed, at the current rate of sales.
Below you will find the activity for Wisconsin Rapids during the past 9 quarters:
As you can see the number of homes sold in the second half of 2009 was considerably higher than 2008.
You can guess why, right? (Hint: it was some type of tax credit)
And remember, the First-Time Home Buyer Credit has been extended AND they’ve also added a new tax credit for home owners who’ve lived in their home for at least 5 years. So if I had to predict (ignore, for a second, that I said I dislike predictions 
) I’d bet money that more homes will be sold during the first quarter of 2010 compared to 2009 as well.
Months of Inventory
Realtors generally agree that 6 months of inventory is the magic number. Below 6 months of inventory you have a sellers market. Anything above you have a buyers market. As you can see its been a buyers market for awhile.
But, as more and more buyers hit the market, the the number has been pushing itself back towards the magical 6 months of inventory. And when the number is close to six everyone wins. Why? Because a seller knows they should be able to sell in a reasonable amount of time and a buyer knows they still have choices and time to find the right home.
Personally, I know the market is active. In the past month I’ll have added 3 new listings. In the past two days I’ve fielded calls from three different prospective buyers.
And I know I can tell them all that it’s a good time to be buying or selling a Wisconsin Rapids home…
PHONE: (608) 542-0178
My name is Adam Holberg and I’m a Realtor with First Weber of Wisconsin Rapids. This website is designed to inform and help bring conversation to a topic I love, real estate.