When to Buy a New Home - SoCal Home Buyers Get Most Choice in March-June

For those who are looking to buy a home in Los Angeles, the story for 2017 is pretty much a repeat of 2016 and 2015. Inventories are at historic lows (Only about 100 homes for sale in Santa Monica), and there is serious competition for the best homes that come on the market. So when is your best chance to score the home of your dreams?

In general, the best time is immediately.  Your first step should be to concentrate on selecting an excellent, hard working realtor, and be prepared to spend six months to a year in your search. You can dramatically shorten the time to locate and buy a home if you are flexible about the home, the neighborhood, or the price. But the more you care about each of those elements, the longer your search is going to take.

The high season of real estate starts in March. More product comes on the market in the Spring as sellers are interested in using the Summer to move. This has generally been related to school and moving the kids to a new district during the Summer. While this is still an issue, even families with no children are generally hoping to move during the Summer months.

As a result, substantially more inventory will be available during March-May. The converse is also true - the shoppers are also out in droves. And yes, prices go up due to the number of shoppers in the market competing for the best properties.

What steps can you take to make the process as smooth as possible? Start by calling Belle Tsai. She has many years of experience helping buyers find a great property in the Los Angeles Market. She is also associated with Sotheby’s International Realty, and that relationship provides you with massive additional resources.

Belle will help you to get set up with an outstanding mortgage broker where you can be preapproved for a loan. Unless you are an all cash buyer, home sellers are going to give preference to offers that have proof of ability to borrow. In this market, you are hugely handicapped if you don’t have your lender preapproval letter.

Next, Belle will listen carefully to your dreams and expectations and then provide professional recommendations for homes that will best fit what you are looking for.

Once the plan is in place, you will receive suggested homes to go visit. Belle will accompany you on these visits to help evaluate each property.  When you find a property that you like, she will help you prepare an offer that will be designed to the right price for that house in that market, and that will appeal to the seller.

If you are ready to start looking for your new home, call Belle today @ 310.738.7118