Author: Sponsor

This week’s Q&A column is sponsored and written by Hope Peele of The Peele Group and Corcoran McEnearney, the leading real estate firm in Alexandria. To learn more about this article and relevant Alexandria market news, contact The Peele Group at 703.244.6115 or email [email protected]. You may also submit your questions to Corcoran McEnearney via email for response in future columns.

Question: What if I want to sell but don’t want a lot of people in my house?

Answer: While at first glance it might seem counterintuitive for one to want to sell their home but not want others inside, there are a ton of reasons why a seller might hesitate to put their home on the open market.

The first thing that is important to know is that putting your home on the market does not mean that you are opening it up to the general public. Buyer appointments are always made by real estate agents, and they will always accompany their client throughout the entire home.

However, as I mentioned before, there are countless reasons why a seller wouldn’t want their home openly marketed. Perhaps they are the CEO of a large company and aren’t ready to share that the company is relocating. Maybe the seller is a public official or just doesn’t want nosey neighbors to visit. There could be someone who is immunocompromised living in the home. In these cases, discretion, privacy, or safety might be more important to the homeowners than price.

What is most important in every situation is that each seller understands how their home will be marketed and how that could affect the price they ultimately sell for.

One option that sellers have is to opt for Limited Marketing, also known as an Office Exclusive. This means that information about your home is not distributed through the Bright Multiple Listing Service.

In this case, there is a disclosure form* that sellers must sign stating that: “Nearly every home in the area is in Bright’s database, and most websites and apps get their information from Bright. This form instructs your broker, however, not to have your property information shared with others through Bright’s system.” The seller must initial that they are “instructing my broker not to market through the MLS and instead to limit marketing to their own network and methods, per my written instruction.” (Source: Bright MLS Office Exclusive Form)

Also stated on this form are the risks of this option: “Studies show that homes publicly marketed through Bright’s MLS typically sell for significantly more than homes marketed as ‘off MLS,’ ‘off market,’ ‘private’ or ‘exclusive.’ And most homes that start with restricted marketing find a buyer only once marketed through the MLS to the open market. If you want to instruct your broker to restrict marketing, then you must sign this form because this limits people’s access to information and may affect the sale price.”

After considering all of this information, the majority of sellers will elect to list their home on BrightMLS but may still have some concerns. Of course, there is never any guarantee that accidents won’t happen. Even the most responsible and professional agent might have a buyer trip into a cabinet and shatter your favorite vase on the floor. I always recommend that my sellers remove this possibility by taking out anything valuable or irreplaceable. Whether it’s starting to pack up a few boxes stashed in your closets or renting a short-term storage unit, this is always a good step to ensure peace of mind.

If they’re able, I typically advise my buyers to get out of town for a long weekend once their home goes on the market. If you’re out for a few nights, you can rely on your Realtor to manage the showings, and you don’t need to worry about keeping your living space “show ready”.

No matter what you choose, there will likely be moments that you are a bit stressed or irritated by people coming into your home. Keep reminding yourself that this is only temporary and to look to the future. You are getting one step closer to being in your new home!

Hope Peele is a licensed real estate agent with Corcoran McEnearney in Alexandria, Virginia. She grew up in Old Town and currently lives in Del Ray. As a partner with The Peele Group, Hope is dedicated to guiding her clients successfully through the many-faceted process of buying or selling a home. Contact Hope at 703.244.6115.

If you would like a question answered in our weekly column or to set up an appointment with one of our associates, please email [email protected] or call 703-549-9292.

Corcoran McEnearney, 109 S. Pitt Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, corcoranmce.com. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.

This week’s column is sponsored and written by Corcoran McEnearney, the leading real estate firm in Alexandria. To learn more about this article and relevant Alexandria market news, contact us at 703-549-9292. You may also submit your questions to Corcoran McEnearney via email for response in future columns.

Question: When is the best time to list my home?

Answer: Across the country, sellers are consulting their calendars to land on just the right time to list their properties.

Just like the temperature, the spring real estate market is heating up in our region, and buyers are anxious to get in on the action. Limited inventory still favors sellers, but there are strong signs that more homes will continue to be added, allowing buyers a better chance of finding a home that meets their needs.

It’s not a secret that the spring market is the busiest of the real estate cycle, but unlike local declarations of the change in season — “the first pitch of Nationals baseball” or the “first blooms of the Tidal Basin’s cherry blossoms” — there’s no clear date that sellers can peg for “The Best Day” to list their home.

Locally, the “spring market” is loosely defined by many agents as “between the Super Bowl and Memorial Day,” which is pretty broad. If you’re looking to move soon and you can be flexible about your listing strategy, here’s what to consider. ​​

Realtor.com’s annual “best time to sell” analysis identifies April 13-19 as the ideal new listing window based on seasonal trends in pricing, demand, and days on market (DOM) seen over the past seven years. But Zillow pushes their ideal date further out and predicts that, based on 2024 data, sellers who listed their home in the last two weeks of May netted an additional 1.6% on the sale, about $5,600 on the typical U.S. home.

Because all real estate is LOCAL, let’s take a look at the trends in our region, with the disclaimer that the best time to list your home is…when you need to move! Life changes can happen at any time, necessitating a move when you may least expect it. Factors like rising or falling interest rates (ex: higher interest rates are likely to keep would-be sellers in their current homes), consumer confidence, and the impact of cuts to the Federal workforce can also influence local market activity, throwing a potential curveball at well-crafted listing plans.

“In general, April and May tend to have the most available inventory, with March and June close behind. Same goes for new listings coming on the market,” says David Howell, CIO and a Principal of Corcoran McEnearney. “But it’s important to note that the relative supply doesn’t change as much as the actual inventory. And that’s because there are more buyers in the spring as well. So, the supply of homes — inventory and contracts — is only a little lower in the spring than it is in the winter months.”

“That wasn’t always the case,” says Howell. “Many years ago, we could count on the market being very quiet from Thanksgiving through most of January. But as our market grew more culturally diverse, the traditional seasonality waned to some degree.”

Another regional influence is the high number of military installations and the service members who keep them operating, but even that impact is shifting from a spring/summer impact to one that is increasingly spread out over the year.

“The summer months were always the biggest for military moves, but PCS (permanent change of station) moves in the military are now typically three years rather than two like they used to be, decreasing the number of moves military personnel would make,” Howell explains.

“What moves the market far more than the seasons is geography and major economic indicators — like mortgage rates and unemployment,” he adds.

As we head toward what could be peak Selling Season, what are the stats telling us about what to expect? BrightMLS, the mid-Atlantic database of real estate transactions, reports that year-to-date, new listings are up 10.4% in the D.C. region, compared to 4.8% for the overall Bright MLS service area. (This is higher than last year but is 5.3% lower than listing activity in the week prior.)

BrightMLS also reports that for the week ending March 23, the increase in local inventory is encouraging sellers to lower their prices, with the share of sellers dropping their asking price now two percentage points higher than it was a year ago. It had been anticipated that DOGE would cool housing market activity in the greater Washington, D.C. area, but BrightMLS reports that the uptick in new listing activity has drawn some sidelined buyers into the market.

“In the spring market, homes tend to go under contract about 10-15% faster, likely influenced by a combination of better weather that makes it easier to see and show houses and the simple fact that there are more buyers in the spring,” says Howell.

Sellers who are preparing to list soon should expect some negotiation from buyers who see, maybe, not “bargains” but “opportunities” with more homes to choose from. Buyer activity was relatively stronger in the D.C. area market than in other parts of the Mid-Atlantic region last week, with pending sales activity the strongest in the local markets where listing activity has increased the most.

If you’re planning to list within the next month or two to capture excited buyers and stand out from the competition, working with the experienced Realtors® at Corcoran McEnearney who understand the nuances of our local market will ensure your real estate goals are achieved no matter what season you’re selling.

If you would like a question answered in our weekly column or to set up an appointment with one of our associates, please email [email protected] or call 703-549-9292.

Corcoran McEnearney, 109 S. Pitt Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, corcoranmce.com. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.

This week’s Q&A column is sponsored and written by Hope Peele of The Peele Group and Corcoran McEnearney, the leading real estate firm in Alexandria. To learn more about this article and relevant Alexandria market news, contact The Peele Group at 703.244.6115 or email [email protected]. You may also submit your questions to Corcoran McEnearney via email for response in future columns.

Question: Do I have to move out immediately after selling my home?

Answer: This actually might seem like a silly question with an obvious answer. Most people assume that once they no longer own the home they must move out. And while that is correct in the long term, sometimes you have some time after selling – if you work it out in advance!

A lot of times, the homeowner’s main concern when considering selling their home is finding their next home. Oftentimes, a seller’s market is the time to sell, but then the sellers become buyers and the fear of not finding a new home becomes real! If this is the case, asking for a Post-Settlement Occupancy Agreement might be the best option. It is always a good idea to have your agent know your timeline, so that they can properly communicate with agents whose clients are interested in submitting an offer.

A post-settlement occupancy agreement outlines a timeframe, and potential cost, of staying in your home past settlement. The new buyers are now the owners, and you will technically become a tenant while you are finishing up moving out. The terms are always negotiable. There is an option for the former owners to pay a flat rate, or a daily rate, and there is a security deposit held by the settlement company.

In some cases, if it is a competitive situation, the new buyers might not charge for the extra time in the home. This can be a leg up against other offers and those buyers who are competing for the home. Some buyers can afford to give the seller some free weeks, since their first mortgage payment will not be due until the 1st day of the 2nd month after settlement (for example, if you settle on April 1, the first mortgage payment will be due on June 1).

The buyer is still protected, because if there is any damage to the property, or if there are disagreements about move-out, the settlement company holds the security deposit as an independent party.

Once the former owner moves out, the buyer has three days to either provide a list of damages – reasons to withhold the deposit – or notify the settlement agent to release the deposit.

If you are selling and need a little extra time to pack and/or find a new home, a Post Settlement Occupancy Agreement may be a great option for you. Talk to your agent about whether this is a good fit for you. And don’t hesitate to reach out if I can help in any way.

Hope Peele is a licensed real estate agent with Corcoran McEnearney in Alexandria, Virginia. She grew up in Old Town and currently lives in Del Ray. As a partner with The Peele Group, Hope is dedicated to guiding her clients successfully through the many-faceted process of buying or selling a home. Contact Hope at 703.244.6115.

If you would like a question answered in our weekly column or to set up an
appointment with one of our associates, please email: [email protected] or call 703-549-9292.

Corcoran McEnearney, 109 S. Pitt Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, corcoranmce.com. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.