In 2016,2017, and now in 2018 You will hear about a SELLER'S MARKET in Ontario real estate. This is a term used to describe that in a simple supply-demand scenario that there are MORE BUYERS THAN SELLERS. That's it. That's all.
However, the implications are far more complicated than the term suggests. A few things that happen in "Seller's markets"
- PRICE INCREASES --that's right, more people want it, price goes up.
- BIDDING WARS -- in some areas, with nice properties, this is almost a guarantee. All it takes for a bidding war is to have 2 or more Buyers competing on purchasing the same property. We've all seen it, and some of us have been part of it. The property is listed for X and sells for X + much more.--with few or no conditions.
- MONEY AND (LACK OF) CONDITIONS WIN THE PROPERTY -- In a Buyer's market the Seller can expect to agree to a home inspection, time for financing, appraisals, testing, warranties, etc.. and may get less then list price for their property. This is much less likely in a Seller's market. Often there are no conditions on the winning offer, AND it is the HIGHEST offer too!
- OPPORTUNISTIC SELLERS APPEAR - there are people who will list their properties for sale who basically do not really intend to sell, but want to test the market value of their property. They put a high price on the property, and hope for a sucker to come along (and sometimes they do) --It's hard to be upset with this, but most people want to buy low and sell high. If someone is in no hurry to sell, this is a legitimate strategy. They will wait, not lower price, and will be content to stay on the market for quite some time. This type of seller warps the statistics of the properties currently on the market with their very high sticker price. Make sure your Realtor is helping you to understand what properties are actually selling for, not just what is currently for sale. Some of the Opportunistic Sellers are listing, cancelling and re-listing every year... don't be the big-fish Buyer they've been waiting to catch!
