COVID-19 is impacting industries all throughout our country, and the real estate market is seeing its share of ups and downs. But now, there is a possible light at the end of the tunnel.
“I’ve seen all sorts of crazy,” said realtor Amy Asher of the unpredictable housing market in 2020.
First time home buyer Alex Saiz decided this was the time to pull the trigger and leave apartment life behind.
“It’s really exciting and a bit stressful,” Saiz said. "I was renting. I just didn’t want to rent anymore.”
He’s been looking at houses with Asher.
Asher said when COVID-19 hit in March, the market screeched to a halt.
“We were all nervous, because you don’t know what to expect,” Asher said.
According to the National Association of Realtors, 85 percent of realtors saw a noticeable decline in sales in the spring. However, the trend is changing.
“Once we got the green light to kind of move about and practice business, man, everyone just jumped,” Asher said.
For most of the country, the pandemic means school at home for the kids and stressed out parents trying to work from home, too.
“I’ve had a lot of past clients call me who feel like the walls of their homes are just closing in around them,” Asher said.
As for Saiz, the upswing after lockdown meant finding the perfect bachelor pad.
"(The pandemic) almost kind of helped me, because it did bring the prices lower and the interest rates dropped,” Saiz said. “It was kind of an opportunity that I took advantage of. It was a total no-brainer.”
For now, the roller coaster ride that is 2020 will continue. Although the future looks promising, this year has taught us all that anything can happen.
"If we don’t level out a little bit, I think we could be heading toward a bubble burst,” Asher said cautiously.
