Is this a Buyers Market? Here in the Coachella Valley, which translates to our 9 desert cities, it sure does appear that the tables have turned! The past few seasons have definitely been a Sellers’ Market, but as our season progresses, it appears to be a buyers’ market. Palm Springs on the West side of the Valley is still seeing some strong sales this past quarter, but even there, things are cooling off. Price/sf. has stopped climbing up, up, up, and seems to be moving laterally now. What is causing the change to a buyers’ market in our Real Estate Market?? Kim Kelly’s perspective is that there has been a perfect storm beginning in January of this year. First off, we are in an election year..no matter why, but elections always cause people to shy away from making any decisions they don’t absolutely HAVE to! The plunge in the oil market, the corresponding drop in our stock market, coupled with the rocky Asian Stock Market, and top that off with the decline in the Canadian Dollar!
Canadians have long been big investors in our Winter home market. It’s an easy flight here and back, the exchange rate favored our real estate values, and why not get out of the cold?? But with the Canadian dollar hovering at approx. 70 cents on the dollar, many of our Canadians decided to sell their desert homes at the same time. For example, there are currently 57 homes listed for sale at The Citrus Club in La Quinta! Unfortunately, the Canadians and many other would be buyers, are sitting on the sidelines at the same time, creating a wonderful Buyers’ opportunity. If you find a home you like, go ahead and write an offer. Yes, you may be able to negotiate better this season than the past few, but be careful not to lowball to the extreme. Have your local Realtor review the comps carefully, and come in with a justified offer. Yes, there is more flexibility this season, but be aware that many Sellers are not desperate this time around..many are just listing to see what happens.
Flippers are still buying and turning homes in the desert cities, but they are few and far between. Thunderbird Heights, which sits across from The Thunderbird CC, posted a couple recent flips in the central city of Rancho Mirage, and they are fairly typical of what’s been going on. Homes built in the 50’s, 60’s and ranch style homes from the 70’s are being purchased, gutted and updated to “modern” architectural styles, then sold. We are also seeing an uptick in price/sf. reductions in all our Coachella Valley cities. We have about 2 months left of our winter season, the Coachella Music Festivals are on their way to town, and then the desert summer heat sets in. If you’re thinking about buying, it’s a great time to throw in an offer!
Here’s a gorgeous home at PGA West for sale. Turnkey, lease income of approx. $85,000/year. $1,450,000.