Fight or Flight in the Real Estate Market?

During the 2020 Pandemic, is there a Real Estate Market?

• 
• By Nancy Smith
• Qualicum Beach REALTOR®
• Published: Apr 11th, 2020 at 9:24 pm

Fight or Flight - the instinctive physiological response to a threatening situation, which readies one either to resist forcibly or to run away.

The world is currently in an unknown risky, fearful and anxious situation right now. All day long the news is scaring the bejesus out of everyone who fears for their family, friends and neighbors. As a REALTOR, we receive nearly daily updates to rules and procedures as they impact our business of helping people with their home purchases and sales.

Though toilet paper, hand santizer, wet wipes and groceries occupy our greatest concerns, there are thousands of Canadians who are currently locked down, unemployed and fearfully worrying how they will pay current bills.

But enough of the repeating the bad news, the next question on some people's minds, what is happening to our home equity? Many people have sold their homes and were shopping for a new place to call home, but the market is .............. What is the market doing?

First of all, many phones stopped ringing, enquiries dropped off, people's minds have been diverted and well, at this moment, there is no real estate market.

However, for people feeling secure in their health, financially secure and feeling optimistic about the future, the 'no market' situation might be presenting opportunities. Do not hold your breath that divorce situations, forclosures and estate sales will flood the market with cheap homes. All these processes will take time to process, and right now, courts are halted.

Many REALTORS, with a bit of marketing sense, are telling their clients that the market was hot leading up to this pandemic, so as we take pause, soon real estate will bounce back with a flourish. We don't quite agree with the marketing happiness. A bounce back, much like the aformentioned processes will take time to get back up to speed, maybe a couple of years.

In the meantime, Governments are throwing cash around like it is growing on our spring fruit trees. The long-eyed look at the market will be tempered as it has been for the past 150 years, people need places to live, and in Canada, home ownership is preferred over renting. Real estate home sales have forever bounced up and down a few percentage points, seemingly to cycle every 7, 10 and 20 years.

Everyone will react to the fight or flight instinct of our being, but persistence, patience and hope will make this event something for the history books, but life will continue. After all, there are already 8 Billion people on the planet at every economic level.

It is your choice to sit in fear or to stride off into the sunrise and make the changes you were dreaming about.

If you are considering selling during these stressful times, or want to find a new home, we are here to help you. There are other people who will be making real estate moves.