Talk about a strange year. Between the COVID-19 pandemic to an uncertain economy to job layoffs, it’s no surprise that many who’ve wanted to sell their land are wondering if they should wait until times get better.
While this hesitancy is understandable, many real estate professionals believe this year could be one of the best times to sell land in years. Given everything that has been going, the general sentiment among landowners is that now is not a good time to sell property. However, data is showing the opposite as buyers are outnumbering sellers in the housing and land markets.
LAND BUYER DEMAND IS BACK
While COVID-19 was forcing many states around the country to quarantine this spring, land sales went dormant for a while. However, now that lockdown restrictions are starting to loosen, many land buyers are eager to make up for this lost time.
In fact, this summer, the real estate market has been quickly rebounding with significant demand for new homes and land sale purchases. Furthermore, this demand is strongest right now in rural areas as buyers look to escape larger cities as many companies are now allowing their employees to work remotely. With so many people working from home, they can now move farther away to get more property for their money.
LOW INVENTORY & HIGHER PRICES
While land buyer demand is up, the number of available properties is actually at its all-time low. Why? People are purchasing land to build their dream homes without any plans on selling in the near future. Even more, with the demand for land properties going up and inventory going down, the conditions are perfect for sellers to get higher prices. In fact, many sellers can get top dollar in the current market. This comes as good news to sellers who expected the real estate market to take a hit resulting in price drops due to the pandemic. Instead, land asking prices are actually much higher now than they were before the pandemic.
LAND LOAN INTEREST RATES ARE LOW
Another factor pushing people to buy land are the historically low-interest rates on mortgages and land loans. This means that land properties could cost potentially tens of thousands of dollars less over the lifetime of a loan. That’s why it’s no surprise that land loan applications have seen a significant increase since last year.
LAND BUYERS NEEDS HAVE CHANGED
Aside from working remotely, people across the nation have been spending their time at home. This, in turn, has flooded the real estate market with buyers who want to build the home of their dreams on their own property. In fact, many people aren’t happy with their current home or location, and the pandemic has increased these feelings since they’ve been cooped up at home.
Location, outdoor amenities, and more room to roam are becoming increasingly important to homeowners. That’s why it’s important to showcase these features when trying to attract buyers. Cleaning up your land and adding appealing photos to your listing are especially crucial in today’s market. In fact, most people start their land search online, and they need a reason to be captivated to visit a property in person. The bottom line, you want to offer as much as possible in your online listing for a buyer to become interested.