TL;DR: Maybe.
A confession: I was torn about where to start with this post. In fact, this started off as a post about what to consider when making an investment, but obviously, the bigger question on all of our minds right now, whether we are talking about the residential or commercial real estate market, is: “What impact will COVID-19 have?”
It’s confusing. And, depending on your situation, either very exciting or a bit scary. It doesn’t help that there are lot of different opinions out there right now. The way I look at it, there are two separate questions that need to be considered:
(1) How will this impact the market as a whole?
and, more importantly,
(2) How will it impact you?
Even with the more optimistic projections, we are looking at a significant rise in unemployment and overall market disruption where things stop working the way we expect, and we start to see rapid and significant drops. We have already seen this in the stock market over the past few weeks - but in the Bay Area, it is still too early to tell what the full impact will be on the real estate market. Looking at numbers for March, the median sales price in Palo Alto remained nearly flat, whereas San Jose saw an increase in median sale price for the third month in a row, and Sunnyvale continued a four-month positive trend. It’s important to note, that homes that closed in March, went into contract in February before Shelter in Place was instituted, one of the reasons it is still too early to know the impact this will have.
Regardless of what happens in the market, what matters most, whether we are talking about a potential investment opportunity or your home, is:
What impact will this shift have on your situation?
Specifically, will you be in a position to capitalize on the shift in the market? Or do we need to come up with a plan to conserve and ride it out? With mortgage rates at historical lows, is now the time to purchase a new home or investment property? Or take advantage of low rates to refinance and lower your monthly payments to begin saving to upgrade in the future, or refinance and cash out some of the equity in your home to pay off high-interest-rate debt.
I get really annoyed listening to self-help or financial gurus giving generalized advice on what to do, when the reality is that everyone’s situation is very different. I am not a financial advisor or a self-help guru, but I am a Realtor and I can help you think through what your real estate options are, and make a plan to achieve your goals.
I am always available for free consultations to help you achieve your goals.
No pressure. Nothing to sign. Just a phone call - or video chat to talk through your options and make a plan.