Real Estate In The Time of Coronavirus: The New Not-So-Normal.

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Since March 23rd the real estate market has been in flux. Now that the rules of engagement have been established and disseminated a new routine is emerging and the results are starting to come in: property listing inventory is dramatically down compared to 2019 but the trend line is turning up slightly. The number of properties going under contract, however, is drifting down compared to last year's pace.

The coronavirus numbers in New York State seem to be flattening out 37 days into the crisis. Although he extended NY PAUSE until April 29th on Monday Governor Cuomo began talking about life and, more to the point, business life after the crisis. Monroe County Executive, Adam Bello, projected two to three more weeks of rising coronavirus numbers in our area. In Wuhan, China several months after the government began cracking down, now counts 90% of its businesses open but the economy has not bounced back.

As always, I am available to talk privately with you about your particular real estate situation.
Call, text or FaceTime: 585-732-1767. ​Email: [email protected]

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​I'm hosting a Zoom meeting to answer your general questions about the local real estate market.
Thursday, April 8, 2020 at 7:00 pm - CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE MEETING
Meeting ID: 585 732 1767
Password: 625369

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News That Affects The Local Real Estate Market

• ​Over the past 2-3 days Governor Cuomo, in citing coronavirus statistics in NYS, has reported a flattening of the curve indicating we may have entered the “apex” phase in New York. It’s not clear if the so-called apex plateau will extend for a period of time or if the rate of infections, hospitalizations and deaths will descend sooner rather than later.

• On Tuesday, April 7th Gov. Cuomo engaged in an extended discussion about getting NYS back to work after the crisis is over. It’s clear we are not at the end of the crisis but I was heartened to hear the Governor begin to talk about life after coronavirus.
• It is very important to note that the coronavirus numbers in New York State are dominated by the New York City region. It’s quite likely the virus will peak/plateau in Western New York after the NYC area. County Executive Adam Bello indicated as much yesterday when talking about the supply of ventilators in our area.
• In his April 7th update Gov. Cuomo opined that a statewide (rapid) testing regime MIGHT determine who in particular would go back to work during a transition back to normal economic activities.

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What is the state of the housing market in our area right now?​
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• Since NY PAUSE took affect on Monday, March 23rd 229 single family homes, condominiums and townhouses have been newly listed for sale in Monroe County which includes two BIG bumps: 23 new listings on Monday, April 6th and 21 on Tuesday, April 7th. 229 listings translates to slightly more than 15 properties per day on average up from 13 per day last week. Slightly over 25% of those properties have gone under contract to buyers as of the midnight on April 7th. 10 properties listed since March 23rd have already dropped off the market. This compares to 540 properties listed over the same period in 2019. 246 properties went under contract during the same period in 2019; a 45.5% success rate. By comparison to last year new property listings are 42.4% behind last year’s pace and accepted contracts are down about 76.4%.​

The Status Of My Business:

• I continue to primarily work out of my home office. I’ve only been back to my professional office in Pittsford twice in the past two weeks. I am in the office today for at least part of the day.
• So far just one of my clients has listed their home for sale since PAUSE. To date there have been no inquiries to that listing. A second client will list a property later this week.
• I have one property that was listed just before PAUSE.  There has been two inquiries on that property since March 23rd. One of the two inquires looks promising but there have been no offers thus far.
• I have been engaged by many home sellers to prepare for listing their properties. This is typical during the Spring market. These activities have included visits to their homes, preparing valuation analysis and consulting with them on preparing their properties for sale.
• My home buying clients are actively engaged in looking for homes to purchase using online information, pre-recorded video tours and video conferencing technology. Although more than one buyer client has successfully negotiated a contract to purchase property right after implementation of the PAUSE none has done so over the past week.

Some Takeaways & Short Term Predictions.

• As expected the number of properties being offered for sale is now rising. I expect this trend to continue briefly until we begin to see the apex approaching when I believe the market will slow to a low ebb. 
• The prospects of actually selling a property under the current circumstances are not strong. Sellers do not appear willing to reduce prices due to the pandemic since many expect the market to bounce back after the crisis passes.
• ​My seller-clients and my Buyer-clients are poised to act as soon as the virus clears and people are allowed to look at properties in person. As a result, I believe the demand for real estate related services and transactions is mounting in the background.

Our Personal Status.

• No change in the health status my family, Carol’s family or Sasha’s family. All good so far.
• If you have time, please feel free to send me an update on how you’re doing.​

I will continue to post updates related to the metro Rochester real estate market during the coronavirus. The situation is changing rapidly. You deserve the most recent information about our real estate market from a source you trust.

I wish you and your loved ones good health and good spirits during this unfortunate crisis!​

Yours,

Rome Celli
585-732-1767
[email protected]

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