May 3rd, 2021
This past weekend, in a surprise victory, Medina Spirit thundered across the finish line at Churchill Downs and captured the Kentucky Derby’s Winners Trophy. The owners, trainer, and jockey overcame odds that bookies had set at 12-1 and celebrated what they had assumed was going to be a lost effort. Their elation is probably similar to that of those fortunate few buyers who have prevailed in bidding wars during the first four months of this year- a period of time in which the average home price in the region rose 14.4%. The number of buyers still far outpaces the number of available properties for sale, however, as predicted, this dynamic may be slowly changing.
An increase in the number of vaccinated Americans combined with seasonal increases in temperature mean that more homes have come on the market for sale. Although it’s not an enormity, more inventory may be having some modest impact. Specifically, the number of offers tendered during a bidding war seems to have notched downward a bit- specifically for higher-end properties. And, in a remarkable development, a colleague posted over the weekend that his buyer had successfully negotiated a purchase offer with a contract containing both a mortgage contingency and an inspection contingency! I’m not forecasting a sudden change in fortune for sellers- this will remain a seller’s market for a long time to come. However, buyers may be experiencing just a bit of relief and, for a lucky few, perhaps they’ll don a large hat, pour out a mint julep and celebrate the fact that they successfully prevailed in their desire to purchase a new home!