What Do the Latest Numbers Say About Our Athens Market?

With how our market’s been acting lately, there’s no better time to be a seller in one of the median price points.
Looking to sell a home in Athens, Georgia? Click here for a Home Price  Evaluation
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As I’m sure you’ve probably heard, the market has been going gangbusters lately, and I want to share some numbers to help you get a sense of what’s happening. When you hear news about the market going crazy and prices rising, that’s usually referring to what’s happening in the median price points. Homes in higher price points aren’t selling as quickly, however, and prices at those higher price points aren’t rising as dramatically either. This is because demand isn’t the same for higher-end homes. These latest numbers, then, represent the activity in our market’s median price point. In East Athens, there are only 31 single-family homes currently for sale under $200,000, which is a little over one month’s supply of inventory. In the last 12 months, 293 homes have sold in this area. With supply this low and demand still high, it’s naturally caused prices to rise. In West Athens, there are only 27 single-family homes for sale under $200,000. These homes encompass all age ranges and sizes, too—some are new, some are old, some are large, and some are small. In the last 12 months, 238 homes have sold in this area.

Now might be the best time ever to sell your home in the median price points.

In Oconee County, there are only 11 single-family homes for sale under $200,000. In the last 12 months, 84 homes have sold in this area. I believe there would be more sales in this area if there were more homes on the market. In addition to making prices rise, this low inventory is almost stifling sales. If you’re thinking about selling your house in this price range, now’s the best time to do it in the last 10 years—maybe even ever. If you’re a buyer, you have to be ready to act fast and make a strong offer if you see something you like. With inventory as it is, many homes are receiving multiple bids and flying off the shelves quickly. Times may be tough, but if prices continue to rise, you’re much better off acting now. If you have any questions or are interested in buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to give me a call or shoot me an email. I’d be glad to help you.

Three Home Buyer Mistakes That Could Cost You Thousands!

There are a ton of mistakes that can happen when buying a home for the first time. Here are the three most common.
Looking to sell a home in Athens, Georgia? Click here for a Home Price  Evaluation
Looking to buy a home in Athens, Georgia? Click here to perform a full home search

I wanted to reach out to you today and discuss some bad buying habits I’ve been noticing. It’s typically the first-time homebuyers making these mistakes so if you are one of those buyers or know someone who is, we have some advice to share. Avoid these mistakes at all cost:

1. Not getting pre-approved before looking at homes. It can be tempting to just head right out to a home or start searching online, but know this: if you plan on buying a home with a mortgage, you’re going to need a loan. The only way you will then know what kind of loan (and home) you can afford is by meeting with a lender and getting pre-approved. Skipping this step will only lead to heartache, as you could fall in love with a home that’s way out of your price range without even realizing it.

2. Choosing the wrong lender. We always align ourselves with great local lenders and we want our buyers to do the same. The problem with a national or Internet lender is that if they drop the ball in one area and the closing is delayed, they will end up costing you a lot more than they initially saved you. A respected local lender won’t let your closing get delayed.

You need a market expert as an agent.

3. Choosing the wrong agent. You need someone who is an expert on your specific market. I couldn’t sell homes in Atlanta. I sell homes in Athens because I know exactly how things work here. I’ve been helping people buy and sell homes for years in this market and there is no replacement for that kind of knowledge and experience. You need an agent who can find you homes as soon as they come on the market—sometimes even before they are listed.

If you avoid these mistakes, you’ll be starting off on the right foot and be one step closer to a smooth closing. If you have any questions for me or want to know how we can help you avoid these mistakes and more, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you.

We Have Exciting News To Share With You!

Are the rumors true? Have we decided to branch out into property management? Well, I’ve got some exciting news to share with you.
Looking to sell a home in Athens, Georgia? Click here for a Home Price  Evaluation
Looking to buy a home in Athens, Georgia? Click here to perform a full home search

You may have been wondering—are the rumors true? Are we doing property management? I’m excited to announce that we have opened up a second brokerage that will focus on strictly managing rental properties for clients. We’ve named our sister company Iron Horse Property Management.

I had clients come to me for years asking me to branch out into property management, and I was always hesitant because my main focus was on sales. I wanted to be great at sales and make that the main focus of Woodall Realty Group.

Now I feel like the timing is better than it was in the past. The reason for this is our sales team is staffed with four full-time agents in addition to myself, our systems and processes are really dialed in, and we helped over 200 families last year. We expect to help even more families this year, and our business is steady enough that I felt we could finally branch out into property management.

A big concern that I've had was that I didn’t have the time during the day to focus on the daily aspects of moving tenants in, handling repairs, moving tenants out, and all the things that come along with property management. My solution was to find and hire a great property manager who has years of experience and, in my opinion, is one of the best in Athens, Jennifer McMahon.

You'll get the same great service through Iron Horse Property Management that you get through Woodall Realty Group.

Jennifer has worked with two other property managers in Athens over the years and has done a great job. She’s a go-getter, a hard worker, and she will be handling the day-to-day aspects of the property management. She’ll be taking care of all of the things that you as a landlord don’t want to do and help things run more smoothly.

So, now we will be able to offer the same great service through Iron Horse Property Management that you get through Woodall Realty Group. If you have rental property that you’re managing yourself, or you’re dissatisfied with your current property management, give me or Jennifer a call.

Our goal with Iron Horse Property Management is to give you peace of mind while maximizing the return on your investment. We want to make owning rental property a completely passive investment for you so that you just receive income each month and not have to worry about it.

If you or someone you know has questions about Iron Horse Property Management or any other concerns, give us a call. We would love to be here for you.