Vague Specifics – March 2020
(Note: this is the 5th time I’ve revised this in the last 2 weeks. Our situation continues to change…) Last fall, we were given a 50% chance of seeing a short, 1-2 quarter period of economic contraction (consecutive quarters fitting the qualifications of a recession). Economists who suggested this didn’t know what would cause it, they just knew we were way overdue for some national/global event that would ultimately lead to people not engaging in normal commerce. I used to tell prospects that if the Dallas real estate market “adjusted”, then we’d have a lot more to worry about than the Dallas real estate market. I hate being right sometimes.
The next couple of months are going to be rough for real estate statistics. As of March 31st, real estate agents are not on the list of essential services, meaning we’re not supposed to show houses. There’s a good chance that will be lifted, because despite the necessity to quarantine, it turns out people still need to find somewhere to live, especially if their rent is expiring. All other real estate services (title companies, inspectors, appraisers, contractors) are allowed to function under social distancing guidelines.
The last 5 months were pretty terrific for the market, but that will be coming to an end soon. Look for March and April to be as slow as we’ve ever seen. In fact, I’m going to be very reluctant to ever look at NTREIS statistics for this time. People are still buying and selling, there’s no doubt about that, and virtual tours are going really rising to prominence all-of-a-sudden.
America’s financial markets are still very solid, but the longer we go on lock down, the more that’s going to be curbed. It’s a black swan event we’re experiencing, and I firmly believe we’ll recover from this far faster than the Great Recession, but the longer we stay shut down, the weaker the recovery, so let’s hope we get more solid data and are able to move from a China-style lockdown to a Japan-style social distancing and quarantining.
We’re going to be okay, everyone. Stay safe.
Architectural Corner – Contemporary/Modern
According to Homeplans.com, the contemporary home “runs the gamut from mid-century modern to the latest designs representing current trends towards sleek, contemporary design. Contemporary-Modern design is characterized by clean, simple lines, a minimum of decoration, lots of glass, and flat or shed rooflines. Many feature unusual open floor plans and Indoor/outdoor living spaces.”
The name “Contemporary” may be a little shortsighted considering it will invariably go out of style someday, yet people will still be obligated to call it “contemporary”, but I digress.
Contemporary-modern homes feature my most hated real estate buzzword, namely “open concept floor plan”. From DIY to Discovery Channel, it’s been driven into the ground. But people want it now, even though they’re not really sure what it means…
