Is our real estate market more like 2009 or 2021?

Depending on who you talk to, it’s both

In 2024, I have worked with 14 homeowners to sell their Bainbridge Island homes, and when people ask me what the market is like to sell a home right now, my automatic response is, “It’s a good market, but it’s one that demands patience.” 

And most importantly, it’s all about setting realistic expectations. 

Using data to support my answer (providing evidence to support the claim, as I always taught my students to do when I was a science teacher), I provide metrics specific to the price range of the seller’s home and show them a battery of figures to tell them what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. 

This year, it has taken much longer to sell homes, on average, than in the days of the pandemic when homes were “flying off the shelf.” And I make sure to show sellers the market conditions for all their comparable sales, too; this includes how many homes sold over the asking price (very few), how many sold for the asking price (many) and how many sold for less than the asking price (most). 

The headline for sellers: you will need to be more patient and expect that buyers will make offers with the assumption they have negotiating power because it’s not 2021 anymore. When working with homebuyers, I conduct the same exercise of data analytics when helping them determine how much to offer on a home. The headline for buyers: you have negotiating power and do not need to waive every contingency and pay over the asking price as was required in 2021 to prevail on the offer review date, but it’s also not 2009 with the island on the front end of a 30% “crash” of home values. 

And to highlight how incredible the negotiations have become, the last few months have seen several examples of multiple offer situations after a few weeks on the market, and even price reductions, and these homes are still seeing sale prices below the seller’s asking price. Read that again! 

As I am now firmly in the season of working with buyers and sellers planning for 2025, the theme is the need to be patient. And have realistic expectations. 

If you or someone you know is considering buying or selling in 2025, please check out my new marketing campaign about how failing to plan is planning to fail. 

Thanks,

Jason

P.S. Sharing the love of some clients

When we met with Jason, his friendly and very professional style and organized and highly communicative process showed both focus on the details and flexibility to accommodate our style. He has a very pragmatic and logical approach to decision making, and he proactively helped us make good choices on the investments that would help the house find its new owner. We felt very confident in his ownership of the process and even moved out of state prior to the home going to market, leaving him to execute the strategy in-person. We absolutely feel that Jason is a trusted advisor and partner in the sale process.

• Binnur and Riyadth Al-Kazily