How is the market doing? Is it a good time to buy? Is it a good time to sell? I can’t tell you how often I have been asked these questions in recent weeks. I know that many of you want to move but you are understandably cautious given the shift in the market from this time last year, so let’s try to answer some of these questions.

There are more homes for sale here than usual. So if you are in a position to buy, there should be lots of choice. This large inventory also means that sellers are often prepared to accept an offer below list price. This is particularly true for older homes that are in need of updating.

Prices are presently very stable. Certainly they have fallen from a year ago but they now appear to have leveled out. The Bay Area economy is one of the strongest in California. Employment is high and more jobs are being created every month. The housing market is strong.

Based on the above, I think this is a great time to buy. Everybody wants to sell at the top of the market and buy at the bottom. For buyers, this is probably as good as it will get.

There is a misconception that all homes are taking a long time to sell. The fact is that desirable homes, accurately priced, are selling within a few weeks. This is what happens in a normal market. I have also seen numerous cases recently where homes have sold above list price. So if you have a nicely upgraded or remodeled home in a good area, list it for sale with confidence. Provided that you don’t have unreasonable expectations, it will sell. But what if you don’t have such a nice home? Well this is when you really need to be realistic if you want to achieve a sale in a reasonable time frame. First of all you need to make it as appealing as possible to a potential buyer. If you are working with me, I will tell you exactly what you need to do but getting rid of all the clutter and making sure that the paintwork and carpeting is up to scratch is a good start. Then you must price it aggressively. A year ago, it seems that people would pay whatever you wanted regardless of condition. Those days are gone for a long time. Every home will sell reasonably quickly at the right price.

The potential sellers with the bigger problem are those who live in an area where there are lots of homes already for sale. San Ramon’s Windemere immediately comes to mind. There are homes in Windemere that have been on the market for months. Yet similar homes come on to the market and sell quickly. You can sell your home quickly in this situation but you have to be realistic. You need to listen to your agent regarding pricing. Over-pricing is the kiss of death. You absolutely must price it below similar homes to have a chance of selling quickly. Upgrades will speed the sale rather than add value in such cases.

Overall, things are a little slow at present but there are good opportunities for buyers, desirable homes are still selling quickly and interest rates are still low. All these are good signs. Look for a strong recovery in the next few months.