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Housing market poised for potential rebound during pandemic - As seen on WEAU

Posted: 05.5.20

As seen on WEAU 13 News

When the Coronavirus pandemic first hit the country, it caused a slump in the housing market.

But now, local realtors say a rebound could be just around the corner. Gary Brenizer is the president of the Realtor's Association of Northwestern Wisconsin and says the market is starting to recover.

“The first few weeks, we did see a pretty good decrease in the activity level,' he says. “Within the last week or so with the warmer weather too, we've started to see a lot more movement in the market.”

With mortgage rates low and first-time home buyer demand high, Brenizer says now could be a good time to start looking at homes.

“Rates are always a correlation to buyer activity and I think again that is why we see such a strong demand at that first time home-buyer level,” Brenizer says. “We are seeing on certain properties, a lot of showings in that first week of activity.”

However some sellers, like Brent Goska, say movement has been slow.

“We've been on the market for about a month and just really light in showings,” Goska says. “Talking with our realtor previous to Coronavirus, there would have been probably 5-10 showings in the first couple days.”

Economists from Zillow, which is a real estate search website, say home sales could fall by 60% this year.

“A lot of our neighbors are unemployed or have been furloughed,” Brenizer says. 'It is a tough time for some people, I should say a lot of people.'

Brenizer says for those who are in the market for a new home, realtors are taking steps to ensure buyers and sellers stay safe.

“With doing virtual showings, virtual open houses, we've seen a lot of clients that want to exercise that option to remain safe,” he says. “We've included sanitizing stations, gloves, having sellers leave the lights on, the cupboards open to minimize touching.”

If you are looking at buying or selling your house during the pandemic, Brenizer says to do your research and be patient.

“Houses will sell in every market,” Brenizer says.

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