“We kept running into brick walls as far as trying to purchase a home,” said homebuyer Nicki Silveira.
Silveira is currently renting a home in Pismo Beach. She and her spouse put offers on some of their dream homes in San Luis Obispo County for eight months, but found out they were outbid by $100-thousand over asking price or even all cash offers.
“It comes down to how much are you willing to overpay for a house,” said Silveira.
According to data from the California Association of Realtors, the median price for a home on the Central Coast has gone from nearly $650,000 up to almost $925,000 this year. That’s a 40% increase.
Houses are now on the market for an average of just eight days and sometimes, even fewer.
“We listed [a home]. It went live on Saturday, and by Monday night and we were reviewing 5 offers,” said Douglas Elliman Real Estate Associate Broker Deborah Brooks.
Local real estate brokers say the reason why the housing market is heating up, is basic economics. There’s not enough supply for the high demand.
“There’s nothing on the market and buyers are just scrambling to get in on whatever they can because interest rates are so low,” said Carter and Company Real Estate Group Broker Kristie Carter.
The price for homes on the Central Coast are getting higher, and it’s turning into a bidding war. So, the housing market is like that of the rest of the country, it’s a sellers market.
“People are moving out of these big populated areas like L.A. and San Francisco, and moving into smaller towns with maybe more outdoor amenities,” said Eighty20 Realtor Alana King.
After months of competing in the Central Coast housing market, Silveira and her husband decided to build a home from scratch in Nipomo instead.
“We ended up building a house. We met all of those things that were on our checklist and we were able to take out the competition factor,” said Silveira.
Central Coast realtors advise potential home-buyers to make sure they’re pre-approved before going to open houses. Once you find a home you like, you won’t want to hesitate to put your offers down.
If you’re thinking of selling your home, Central Coast Realtors added sellers should get their houses staged quickly and be prepared to move shortly after listing.
