Right now, you may be rethinking that idea you had for listing your house or buying a home this spring. I hear you, and your thoughts are being echoed throughout the industry. I'm not saying that it's business as usual, but our real estate market has not come to a halt either. While the drop in the federal prime lending rate will not have a direct impact on mortgage rates, they are still at record lows despite a slight increases last week. Let me walk you through some steps that you can take to help navigate the next few weeks so that you can continue on your real estate path with education and confidence.

Step 1: Talk With Your Lender 

The drop in mortgage rates over the last few weeks, especially during the first week of March means that your lender may be experiencing a high volume of refinance packages. This may, in turn, have an impact on the amount of time that it takes to close on new loans. The most important step that you can take is to have a conversation with your lender. If you anticipate any upcoming changes relating to recent world events (such as a delay in pay or job status change), please relay those to your lender immediately so that they can work with you on an effective plan moving forward. If your home is for sale, check with the buyer lender to ensure that timelines will be met and all parties can begin to make moving plans. Above all, if you can offer flexibility during this time, let that be known upfront so that everyone's mind can have some level of ease. We all want the same positive outcome.

Step 2: Take Time to Really Prep Your House

So many times the initial decision to list one's home is done quickly and usually in response to finding another home that you like or an unexpected job change. These quick decisions leave little time to prepare your home properly for sale. 

Some items to start with:

• Clean Out Your Drawers and Cabinets. One of the number one reasons people move is to have more room, so show then how much room they will have in your home. If everything is piled to the brim and overflowing, they won't be able to see the advantage.

• Declutter Every Room. Not only will donations be needed around the country, but you may actually have some time to go room by room and really take note of what is needed.

• Facetime Your Agent. Unsure where to start? Well, that's what I am here for. We can go room by room via Facetime and I can help you determine the areas that need your attention the most. You can then create a checklist based on what helps homes sell faster to keep you on task.

Step 3: Think Virtually 

Technology is AMAZING! We can still take care of many of your needs virtually!

• Selling? Let's have a virtual consult to assess your needs. We can do a walk-through of your home and work on an accurate market analysis. We can consult on staging and repairs, if photographers are still allowed to move about and continue business, we can begin an advanced coming soon campaign before the house even hits the market. 
• Buying? Many homes have virtual tours already in place and if not, I am happy to make a plan for safe home touring. As Realtors, we are helping sellers and buyers put good home tour hygiene practices in place.

Step 4: Stay Calm

Everything has been in place for a strong spring market and no one could have anticipated the recent changes to our global society. There is no doubt that there will be financial fall out from Covid-19 and its impacts around the world.  Overall there is still a strong need for housing and historically low mortgage rates. One immediate impact may be fewer homes entering the spring market than we had anticipated to fill the depleted inventory. For you, this means that you will still need to be prepared. A pre-approved loan letter will give you a great amount of leverage in the buying process.  Coming soon campaigns are going to be more important in a short inventory market for sellers and most of all you will need a solid and actionable game plan. The good news is that all of these things can be done from the convenience of your home! 

Step 5: Continue Strengthening your Community

Do you want to know what really sells homes? Great communities! There has never been a better time to come together as a community and support one another. Check on your neighbors, if they are ill try to safely provide support.  We should all try to support our local small businesses now and in the future to help ensure their survival.