Home prices hit record high on low inventory

Well here we go roaring into the third quarter of 2017. It has been alot more of the same in the second quarter. Inventory of homes is way down still (-8.4% nationwide year of year). If we think about that for a second, last year was a very tight inventory market that saw homes selling very fast. This year is tighter 8.4% tighter. We continue to see a market that buyers are fighting for homes and sellers getting more money than they anticipated. Home prices in the latest home sales report hit another record high!!! Home prices across the country are up 5.8% year over year for a median sales price of $252,800.

As an agent who represents alot of buyers, sellers, and investors, I am constantly asked what is causing prices to go up so much? The answer could be found in the first day of Econ 101 supply and demand. As interest rates continue to stay low and many of our younger buyers are getting better paying jobs they are looking to join the older contingent in buying. We see many folks looking to downsize and many of their children looking to purchase. The biggest problem is finding them a house. The higher end to luxury market continues to see inventory available, it is the smaller to mid sized market (up to $300,000) that is seeing the most competition.

Ok so if you are a buyer how do you begin to think about stepping into this market without getting burned out looking at homes just to loose them to a higher, better, cash offer? It starts with the search. Where are you looking for the homes you are interested in? Many buyers begin their search online before they even begin to contact a real estate agent. In the big world of advertising we live in, many people turn to Zillow or Trulia. Stop There!! These are the two companies with the most investor money to spend online trying to hook the consumer, not the companies with the best data. Zillow survives by taking the data stream from multiple channels (Kw.com, remax.com, Realtor.com ect.) trying to repackage it and then presenting it as their own. Oh then spending tons of investors dollars to get you the consumer to look at their old mostly inaccurate data to click on an agents name (who spent usually at least $2,000 month to be there). Ok now I feel better Zillow rant over, please if you are browsing on your own without a link to an agents MLS portal use a site like realtor.com, or many of the brokerage sites out there like (kw.com). These sites pull data directly from an MLS feed.

Step two is to meet an agent, not any agent, not someone who works during the night and carries a real estate license, a real full time. A I support my family selling homes real estate agent. You need to find the person who works this market everyday, an agent who knows the other agents, one who knows the "games" some agents try to play, and knows the strategies to use to get you the home over some other less experienced agents. You see, many of us have worked in this market awhile and have done transactions with other experienced agents that have gone well. Knowing the history and tendencies of other co agents is a big deal when presenting to a seller. Knowing which banks can close loans, and close one time, knowing the difference between a sale contingency and a concurrency, being fair to all parties with still getting our clients interests achieved. So step two is pick an agent knows what they are doing, someone people likes and likes doing business with.

Step 3 get a referral from a lender, not your local bank where you do your checking or saving and has a nice guy or lady sitting in the corner waiting to offer you .10% off your car interest rate. You need a lender who does mortgages, someone again who lives eats and sleeps mortgages. This is the same thing I pointed out below with picking an agent. Do you want someone who specializes and makes all their money in doing checking and saving accounts and investing in CD's but dabbles in mortgages? This is a big. When agents who represent sellers see offers coming in with buyers pre approved with banks who are notorious on not closing on time, writing weak pre approvals, who stink at communication, how good do you think your chances are of getting your offer accepted when the seller is looking at multiple offers? Ask your seasoned agent for a referral, it's our reputation on the line and we would only send you to people we would trust and vise versa with the local lenders.

Following these three steps up front will give you an advantage right away when you are out looking for your next or first time home purchase.

Ok sellers, you are reading this and it all seems awesome!! You are thinking how do I get all these zillow people to start bidding my house up and putting a ton of money in my pocket? Well I am here to let you know all these "zillow" people are walking around informed. Buyers today with all the information available know the market, they know your neighbors home price, they know the comps, and they are not willing to be taken advantage of. I said prices are up and yes they hit a record high up that number is only 5% year over year, it's not like if you invested in bitcoin 10 years ago. Again you need a strong agent who has a track record for success and a plan. Posting some cell phone pictures, and a sign in the yard is not going to get you top dollar in this market. As a seller if you are willing to listen maybe pick up a paint roller and do a couple small projects, market your houses like it is something worth $300,000, and present it as such with a strong agent, you can take advantage of this market.

So as we head off into the second half of the year what's going to happen? Well my feeling is it is going to get better. As the news cycle steps away from some of the political talk it will start talking about record home prices, this will catch people's attention and sellers will begin to sell. My feeling is this will be the time the fed start really hiking rates causing buyers to step back, inventory to moderate along with prices and we will move back into a balanced market. This is how markets work, they work that way in the financial markets, commodity markets, cash grain markets, again this is all about economics and supply and demand. It will not happen overnight and if you are thinking about selling, this market is not due to fall off a cliff. As we head into the fall and winter I do expect it to start moderating, but I really think we have at least another year of low rates, tight inventory and good prices.

As always my self and my team are here to help answer any questions you have, or to get you a free market analysis on your home. Call me, text me, email me anytime. We are here. 440-941-3641 Bradmiklovich@kw.com. www.BradleyAlanRealEstate.com

Below is a quick list of some of our latest listings as proof of what I am saying above is real.


Enjoy the 2nd half of summer and Go Tribe!!



2936 Vincent Silver Lake under contract 3 days!! Full Price

1004 Wrens Hollow Kent Sold in 12 hours over list price $248,000

3424 Mallard Aurora Sold in 1 day all cash $235,500

9640 Evan Miller Trail Olmsted Township: Sold in 10 days $4,000 over list price: $268,750

6339 Cheryl Pl, Concord, OH 44077 Sold in 3 weeks all cash full ask price: $212,500

2515 Hanson Ave, Stow, 44224 sold in 3 weeks $192,500

5624 Nicholson Dr, Hudson, OH 44236 Previous expired sold in 1 week

5873 Queens Hwy, Parma Heights, OH 44130 sold in 1 week had 10 offers

806 Silverberry Ln, Hudson, OH 44236 sold in 3 HOURS full ask $349,500

6206 Velma Ave, Parma, OH 44129 under contract in 1 week

2629 N Haven Cuyahoga Falls - Under contract in 2 days Full Price

2017 Winter / Spring Market Update

Wow what a winter market we have seen. It seems that this has happened now for the past 3 years, the 1st day of January the real estate market just takes off. 2017 has started the same way, inventory has been very tight and prices having been climbing, with many homes going into multiples within the first week. Our buyer are finding themselves making very strong offers to win homes. Like I mentioned this is nothing new, we have now seen this every year since 2014. The big question in my mind is will it continue into the summer? In most years the winter and early spring market sees homes sell very quick and for top $, then once the nice weather sets in inventory finally finds it way to the market just in time for the buyers kids to get out of school and everyone leave for vacation, leaving homes to sit on the market and sell for lower prices.


 At this point on the last day of March I do not see a slowdown in site, we have backlogs of buyers who continue to look for the right house. The stress for these buyer is interest rates! The fed has already raised the Fed Funds rate once, and the rate in which you borrow for a 30 year mortgage has not moved much, we continue to hover around 4%. This is a great thing for people still looking. It was last fall when we had thought the market may have topped out and we were set for a sideways balanced market, it seems the election and the stock market have bought us more time. Being in North Eastern Ohio where we continue to see jobs being created keeps us somewhat insulated as well.


 The bottom line to this quarters real estate market update is, things are good! Very Good! If you are thinking about selling, wow now is the time, prices are great, days on the market are low, and buyers are looking. If you are thinking about a home purchase, rates are low, there can still be deals to be had, and our team carries alot of listings that can be seen but are not on the market. If you are thinking about that next purchase, sale or investment, contact us today. 216-287-6357

Pending home Sales fall nationally, is now the time to sell sell sell?

Published September 29th 2016 we saw pending home sales of existing home sales fall 2.4% Nationwide, when no change was predicted. This is a number our team was anticipating, you can feel it around the office, it feels like the rug was pulled out from under the market. The numbers seem very slight, but when you are coming off a market that was constantly growing, and running like crazy any pull back is felt. Just 2 months ago on a stage in Austin Texas the founder of Keller Williams Realty International; Gary Keller, was preparing the company for the impending "SHIFT". Gary talks about a market that is on historic highs and is poised for a drop. Of course any market shift will be felt in different ways in different parts of the country, the coasts drop hard and the interior falls in a much less dramatic way. As I travel across the country and meet with top Real Estate agents, you meet people who truly see the sky falling, they hear about a “shift” and feel like it is 2008 all over again. They are predicting a market collapse. Here in North Eastern Ohio we see it a bit differently, I always liked the quote often heard in our Keller Williams Chervenic Office meetings "Stick with the rust, it does not boom and it does not bust" referring to Cleveland and the Midwest as the rust belt. The housing numbers locally do reflect what we are seeing nationally, but of course on a smaller scale. In Summit County we saw September home sales for Summit County down -.72% year over year, Cuyahoga saw similar numbers at -.89%. The question is what is causing the sudden drop off? Rates are still near historic lows, the stock market is still working, and we have not really seen anything major happen in the economy or anything we haven't seen before geopolitically. I go back my hedge fund days and want to blame it on the election year. If you talk to any salesman locally they will almost all tell you the same story, “It’s like the buyers all went on strike”. I am here to tell you that, folks this is how markets work. All of a sudden they are working and moving higher and for no reason, all of a sudden, the water just stops flowing, the spigot turns off. The reason of course goes back to economics 101, supply and demand. Locally prices are on FIRE. Summit County has seen home prices rise 11.5% year over year, Cuyahoga County +2.3% year over year. This is what happens, prices get to a certain level and the buyers seem to all look at each other and say "forget it", people just do not seem to want to chase this market higher. In the spring it seemed everything was on fire, everything was in multiples, if you saw a house you better have made an offer that day and it better have been over list price or someone else was going to buy it. Now we see buyers more willing to wait, they hear the news and the stories about the markets slowing on the coasts and they are unwilling to keep paying these high prices. Inventory is still a big issue. We just do not have the homes to sell. It is getting better to some degree but still a heavy sellers market. You might say how does that make any sense? Prices are way up and inventory is low, but you see the market slowing? How? In market corrections it just happens, buyers just stop paying up, the sellers get caught up on the news and realize where prices are and inventory starts to creep higher. It is like the old saying in the grain pits (By the time the farmer starts selling they have already missed the highs, and are going to end up selling the bottom). My advice is if you are thinking about selling your home, now is the time, don't be the farmer. I think NEO is fairly well insulated with everything going on here locally, from an economic standpoint but we still feel it. With an election coming around the corner everyone is worried about interest rates. Did you know a .5% INCREASE has a $15,000 effect on your buying power? Assume you wanted a $1,050 mortgage payment (P&I) per month and the rate was 3.9% you could afford roughly a $213,000 house when rates creep to 4.4% it goes down to $198,000 then if we go up 1% which is not really alot at all by historic standards, your buying power slips to $189,000. That is a big deal! What these numbers are screaming at us is now is the time, and it might be the last time we ever see this in our lifetime to both buy and sell. Rates are so low it is almost borrowing money for free and if you are thinking now is the time for a move up house, yes you are right. You might have to pay a little more for the next house but the rates will more than make up that difference. Imagine the market slipping back to 2015 numbers (-11.5%) from where we are today and a 1% increase in rates. Yikes! The investment market has still been something of the ages. Multifamily demand is just amazing across the country. I have had the privilege this past month to spend some time with some of the region's top real estate investors and although some are looking to sell they are looking to redeploy that capital into bigger complexes of multifamily with some mixed office space. I was able to spend an afternoon with the top brass at Quicken Loans in Detroit this past month and as you gaze out of the offices of Dan Gilbert you see that he owns everything out of his window except two newly constructed buildings in downtown Detroit. I was told even investors such as him, are now having a hard time finding more to buy. I spoke with a prominent real estate attorney outside of DC this past month and they were saying that investors are happy to see 2%CAP rates. That is really really low. Many of these investment plays are being made behind the scenes and the properties are not even hitting the markets. Just last month I had an investor quietly show me a $11.5M portfolio of multifamily complexes that if we found him a suitable buyer for the entire portfolio he would sell. Although we never took the properties to market we were able to obtain a commitment with weeks just from our sphere, now even our team is having a hard time finding the next large multi family project to put the money into. Crain’s recently published an article about Single family home "flippers", they have Cleveland ranked number 4 in the country and Akron number 9. Cleveland is seeing gross returns for investors at 102.6% and Akron 85.6%. Those numbers are just incredible; the problem even here, is inventory. Myself and my investment partners scour the MLS, HUD sites, and Auction sites every single day hoping to find something before anyone else. Just last week we made an offer on a small home in Fairlawn heights, came in with a cash offer 50% over list price and still lost the home in multiples (11 offers in 6 days on one stinky molding house). It is tough out there, but plenty of money is being made if you are lucky enough to land the right deals. If you are looking for steady rental incomes we still see and have both on and off market duplexes that are producing 20%+ CAP rates. If you are a first time home buyer just waiting to dip your toe into the waters, now is the time for you too. Lenders have loosened credit and some first time home buyer programs are back. We have lending partners even offering loans with as little as 1% down, and the good lenders are still closing loans in 30 days of less. If you are thinking about Buying, Selling, Investing now is the time and it might still be the best time ever!! For your entire home buying, selling, and investing needs feel free to reach me at: Bradley Alan Real Estate team at Keller Williams Chervenic Realty 440-941-3641 Bradmiklovich@KW.com Your Home Search Starts Here www.BradleyAlanRealestate.com

Pour for the Cure Celebrity bar tending event Hudson's Thursday

WHAT: POUR For A Cure, Fundraiser Event, Befitting the Seidman Cancer Center.

 WHEN:Thursday October 24th 7:30 PM

 Where: Hudson's at First and Main in Hudson, OH. 80 N Main St Hudson, OH 44236

 Memo: Come join the Kurtz and Company Real Estate Team as we host our second annual Pour For a Cure celebrity bar tending event. The Kurtz Team in partnership with University Hospital will be hosting an event at Hudson's featuring a 50/50 raffle and the famous Ta Ta Tini. All tips will be donated to the Seidman Cancer Center.

 So Come by and have a drink for a good cause. If you have any questions please let me know. Brad@Kurtzcompany.com

Looking for Open Houses this weekend in Stow and Hudson?

The forecast for this weekend looks absolutely perfect, so if you are looking for a new home or trying to get an idea of what is on the market before you sell, this is a great weekend to check out some great open houses. 

If you have any questions about anything on the market please let me know brad@kurtzcompany.com.

I will be hosting an Open House at 3320 Pine Hollow Dr. in Stow from 11:00am-1:00pm Sunday. I will be serving refreshments and dessert.  4Beds 3 Baths 2460 Sq/ft. $260,000

Join The Kurtz team from 2:30PM-4:00PM Sunday at

 7226 Granby Dr. in Hudson. 4 Bedrooms 3 Baths 2528 Sq/ft $289,000

Join Karen Meehan from the Kurtz team from 12:00pm-2:00pm Sunday at

5776 Williansburg Cir Hudson. 4 Beds 3 baths 2430 sq/ft  $335,000

Join Ted Olson from the Kurtz Team from 11:30am-1:00pm Sunday at

2090 Fairway Cir in Hudson.  One floor living in Hudson $219,900

$185,900

3890 Greentree Rd

Stow

SUM08

25

10/13/13

1:00 pm - 3:00 pm   Hosted

Kremer Realty Inc. /  Peggy A Norris

$162,900

3805 Woodbury #71

Stow

SUM09

37

10/13/13

1:00 pm - 2:30 pm   Hosted

Keller Williams Chervenic Rlty /  April Wagner

$175,000

384 Wyoga Lake Blvd

Stow

SUM10

38

10/13/13

1:00 pm - 2:30 pm   Hosted

Howard Hanna /  Teresa K Fiorentino

$177,000

4433 Foresthill Rd

Stow

SUM09

53

10/13/13

12:00 pm - 1:30 pm   Hosted

Prudential Karam & Simon /  Frank C Smolinski

$194,900

4545 Greenlawn Dr

Stow

SUM09

124

10/13/13

3:00 pm - 4:30 pm   Hosted

Howard Hanna /  Teresa K Fiorentino

$823,500

6923 E Hunting Hollow Ln

Hudson

SUM14

215

10/12/13

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm   Hosted

Coldwell Banker Hunter Realty /  Silvana Dibiase

$94,000

3955 Lake Run Blvd

Stow

SUM09

151

10/13/13

1:00 pm - 2:30 pm   Hosted

Howard Hanna /  Robert C Lagasse

$349,900

2719 Prescott Downs Dr

Stow

SUM09

179

10/13/13

2:00 pm - 4:00 pm   Hosted

Howard Hanna /  Carla A Groom

$260,000

3320 Pine Hollow Dr

Stow

SUM09

17

10/13/13

11:00 am - 1:00 pm   Hosted

Keller Williams Chervenic Rlty /  Patricia S Kurtz

$289,000

7226 Granby Dr

Hudson

SUM14

10

10/13/13

2:30 pm - 4:00 pm   Hosted

Keller Williams Chervenic Rlty /  Patricia S Kurtz

3447378

$335,000

5776 Williamsburg Cir

Hudson

SUM14

13

10/13/13

12:00 pm - 2:00 pm   Hosted

Keller Williams Chervenic Rlty /  Patricia S Kurtz

$219,900

2090 Fairway Cir

Hudson

SUM14

252

10/13/13

11:30 am - 1:00 pm   Hosted

Keller Williams Chervenic Rlty /  Patricia S Kurtz

More Free Events HUDSON ART WALK Thursday Oct. 10th

Thursday October 10, 2013 5:00-9:00PM Downtown Hudson

Do you love Art? Do you like free events? Well  we have the event for you.  Come join us for the main event: The HeART of Hudson Art Walk. Showcasing art in many forms, at several locations throughout Main St. and First and Main. We will also have ongoing musical and performance entertainment throughout the evening.

The Hudson Art Walk is a free event stretching the entirety of First and Main located right in downtown Hudson. Don’t forget to stop by the Keller Williams Chervenic office located at 148 N. Main St. and join The Kurtz and Company Real Estate Team for hors d’oeuvre’s and view some of the great artists on site. 

5:00pm: The event begins with the Kickoff at the Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation, located at 10 W. Streetsboro St.

4:30-7:30: Ongoing chalk art creations, Clinton St

5:00-9:00pm: Ongoing graffiti art, First and Main Green

6:00-7:00pm: Free watercolor sampler class (hosted by the Hudson Society of Artists), Old Church on the Green, 1 East Main St.

7pm-Live Speed painting, Todd V, First and Main Green

7:30-8:30pm: Free Charcoal figure drawi

ng class, Shannon Casey. Studio, 70 W Streetsboro St.

Like always any questions email me at Brad@kurtzcompany.com or visit the event page at http://heartofhudson.com/

Thursday October 10, 2013 5:00-9:00PM Downtown Hudson

Looking for something fun and free to do this Fall?

Join the Kurtz Company Real Estate Team, as we sponsor this years Hudson Fall Hike and Bike Spree. The event goes from September 28-October 30th. It's a great way to get outside with the entire family and enjoy some of the great parks our community has to offer. The program is simple Visit at least 8 of the 13 designated parks between September 28 and November 30, note the visit date for each park on a printout of the below form, and turn it into the Park District office at Hudson Springs Park to receive a free Friends of Hudson Parks t-shirt. Some of the trails are more difficult then others, but get out there and find out for yourself. 

The application can be printed at the link below or visit http://www.friendsofhudsonparks.org

 If you have any questions please feel free contacting myself at Brad@kurtzcompany.com

Application: http://www.friendsofhudsonparks.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/bikehikespree-one-page092713.pdf