On August 1, 2023, we closed on a lovely townhome in Cobblers Crossing, Elgin, IL. 771 N. Shady Oaks was met with incredible activity as soon as it hit the market. The home was listed for sale in early July; showings were solid – back to back up until the open house.
An open house shortly after listing made sense in this scenario because I knew this would allow more interested parties to view it. I held a three-hour open house on July 15, and folks were lined up waiting to get in. We experienced a steady traffic flow during the open house, which ended in a cash offer exceeding the list price – not uncommon over the summer. Although interest rates were higher than they had been in a while, they were not the 7%+ we are experiencing now.
The primary driver of this activity? We’ve all heard it by now hundreds of times: inventory shortage. This home goes to show what can come of caring for a home. This homeowner cared for her home over the many years she owned it, and that care paid off significantly.
My seller needed to find a larger home, which prompted the sale of her home in Shady Oaks. The crazy housing market times we are in (and have been in) for a while takes serious strategy (contact me, and I’ll share). However grateful we were for the fantastic offer, the other side of this scenario was the need to find a home to buy. This market is not for the faint of heart.
Of course, we looked at potential homes before the home sold, but once we accepted an offer, it was off to the races. The market that provided for an incredible transaction in Cobblers Crossing also made finding a home to purchase challenging.
After much searching, the answer was a new construction home. While we have a long way to go regarding housing inventory catching up with demand, builders are building, and the Elgin/South Elgin area is seeing a great deal of new construction activity.
New home builders understand the market and offer incredible incentives – including reduced interest rates. If you are in the market for a new home and think new construction is out of reach, you might be surprised at what you find. Furthermore, a common misconception is that you don’t need a REALTOR because you are buying new. A REALTOR can be invaluable throughout the transaction process as a guide and someone who will help keep everyone on track.
No matter the scenario, buying and selling a home is always an emotional experience, and I am so grateful to my friends who have entrusted me to guide them. You get to connect much more deeply, which means a lot to me.
If you’d like to learn more about the strategy behind these two transactions that made a sale and purchase within weeks of each other possible, please get in touch with me. I’m always happy to chat and share my insight.
As always, thank you for reading!