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Ted Strodder


415.377.5222
Golden Gate
Sotheby's International Realty
189 Sir Francis Drake Blvd
Greenbrae CA 94904

August in Marin: The Lazy, Crazy Dayz of Summer

August is here in Marin and what a month this usually is. Weather is near-perfect with lots to do outside all around the county or state. Lake Tahoe is at capacity as we found out after heading up to enjoy a couple days of summer fun and a some great food. Go up midweek if you can for a bit less busy-ness, but still plenty of people around having a great time in the great outdoors of Northern Cal.

The kids enter the home stretch here before heading back to s-c-h-o-o-l. (You have to be careful using that word around some of our local students, like my son), meaning only a few more weeks of camps, play dates or hang outs as they’re apparently called by our teens. But wait, what? Isn’t this supposed to be real estate blog? Yes, and I’m getting to that!

What I was going to say was, is everybody on vacation, like buyers and sellers too? Not necessarily. As you may know, August is typically one of our slower buying months, right up there with January, though for a completely different reason in a totally different season. What we get in the dead of winter is just that: the deadness of post-holiday, rainy (or snowy) blues where everybody pretty much hibernates until mid February. It’s then off to the races for our busy spring market.

In August, a lot of people go on vacation: buyers, sellers and even real estate agents (see above for more clarity), albeit usually not for long. So our usually low inventory stays typically low until after Labor Day. This could be a window of opportunity for some sellers to pass through as they could very well be the only listing in that area and price range. Trouble is (and it’s always something, right?) there are fewer buyers to push up that price into multiple offer, over-asking territory. So what’s a seller to do.

Don’t play chicken with the market, that’s what. If you gotta sell, you sell. If you can wait, maybe go ahead and wait til after Labor Day, but you just may see more competition in your price range, your area or even on your street. More will come on the market then, I promise, and there will also be more buyers looking to close escrow and move in by Thanksgiving or Christmas at the latest. But don’t mess around too much by trying to time the market. Work with your personal time frame first and you’ll never go wrong.

Buyers, keep looking, even if you’re on vacation. Log in daily to watch for new listings, most of which will have video or drone shots to give you the lay of the land from afar. If it looks compelling, send your agent by to check it out. They can face time you from the house and walk you through if you like. You can then take it from there. Just also don’t try and wait too long or time the inventory market. If you see a great place, make a great offer!

That’s it. Enjoy August wherever you are. As always, let me know of any questions, thanks for reading and here’s to a great summer season for all of us.

TS

Text or call 415.377.5222 or ted@gomarin.com