Real Estate During COVID-19

By: Casey Walters, Editor|July 10, 2020

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Photo By Casey Walters

The housing market is being heavily affected by the current pandemic. Sarah Goss saw an increase in housing sales after the spike of COVID-19 cases in March.

During COVID-19, real estate has faced challenges as people continue to buy and sell homes. New precautions are constantly being implemented to make sure illness is not spread between buyers and sellers.

“There are industry rules in place, and those keep changing with different phases.  In addition, each buyer and seller has a different comfort level with social distancing and masks,” Southwestern Real Estate managing broker Sarah Goss said.

Real estate has also adapted to an online platform. 

“We’ve seen homes selling through virtual showings, and we’ve seen closings happen with buyers in their car signing paperwork while attorneys run in and out of the title company,” Goss said.

While some businesses have been struggling, real estate has been steady as people continue to buy and sell houses.

“We were slow the first 2-3 weeks after the hold-in-place started, and things have become incredibly busy since then,” Goss said. 

The influx in home sales is not a coincidence. COVID-19 has given buyers a reason to put their homes on the market, and sellers are taking advantage of this opportunity as well. 

“I have seen an increase of sellers and buyers. It’s tough to pinpoint exactly why, but I’d say that low interest rates are a big factor. In addition, I’d say that people are generally making their housing situation a priority because it has become so important during the quarantine. And any issues you have with your current situation were highlighted during the lockdown,” Goss said.

The hold-in-place also made people see their homes from a different perspective. Buyers are looking for a home that accommodates the new normal, and sellers are ready to take the initiative. 

“The quarantine has made priorities change, such as needing a home office, more space for kids schooling at home, commute times are less important, living close to family might be more important. In addition, I feel some people simply had more time to prepare their homes to sell and shop for homes online. Once that ball starts rolling, it’s hard to stop,” Goss said.