HOUSTON – (Michelle Leigh Smith for Realty News Report) – A year ago, COVID fears kept many people from shopping for homes in person with real estate agents. By spring 2021, the situation had changed markedly.
The Houston Association of Realtors reported that home showings increased 41 percent in late April compared with the same period in 2020. In the seven-day period ending April 26, there were about 49,314 home showings.
“Showings continue non-stop!” says Neal Hamil, a realtor with Martha Turner Sotheby’s. “I’m even getting requests to show properties that are under contract from buyers who want to submit backup offers should something fall through. Our showing department at Sotheby’s is logging record numbers daily.”
Unstoppable Velocity
The Houston housing market is moving with remarkable speed. Single-family home sales were up 24 percent in March compared with the previous year, and prices are rising rapidly. Many homes are selling above the asking price and receiving multiple offers, while mortgage rates remain low.
Given those conditions, it’s no surprise that showings are surging — a trend visible across the country.
“Despite double-digit price appreciation and declining inventory, the number of showings per listing has risen dramatically in many areas,” said Michael Lane, president of ShowingTime, a leading showing management and market statistics technology provider for residential real estate. “The nation saw two months of substantial declines in buyer traffic last year when the pandemic hit. We’ve now seen ten consecutive months of year-over-year increases in showing activity. With more listings typically coming on the market in spring, buyers should have a larger pool to choose from and more opportunities to compete for listings.”
With inventory so limited, buyers who find a home they like often need to act quickly.
“Buyers can’t think too long about whether or not they want to see a home. Otherwise, it will be gone,” says Greenwood King Realtor Kristin Tillman.
“Showings have increased significantly, as have pendings and closings,” says Greenwood King Realtor Cathy Blum. “With low inventory, low interest rates, and the fact that since COVID the home has become more important than ever, buyers are seeking space for home offices, outdoor enjoyment, and even room to socially distance within their own households. After being cooped up for a year, buyers want more space.”
About a year earlier, some buyers and sellers were hesitant to tour homes because of concerns about catching COVID from surfaces like doorknobs. Current science has largely discounted those fears.
“We worked straight through the pandemic, observing all necessary protocols — because if you are going to ask people to shelter in place, they have to have a home to shelter in,” says Roger Martin, president of Roger Martin Properties in West University Place. “Then the Big Freeze hit, damaging many Houston homes and tightening an already constrained market. Now we have more buyers than sellers. Showings and closings are happening fast, but the limiting factor is lack of inventory. We’re having multiple showings on well-priced, well-marketed properties. Due to demand, property appraisals are difficult to schedule quickly.”
“Following strict guidelines, I was still showing properties last year; even during the tightest lockdown period,” says Neal Hamil. “I did have a couple of sellers pull their listings off the market due to COVID fears, which is totally understandable.”
Showing Equipment: Clorox Wipes, Hand Sanitizers and Extra Masks
“I traveled around with Clorox wipes, hand sanitizers and extra masks!” says Hamil. “People used extra caution and were extremely respectful. Sellers often turned lights on and off and opened and closed doors themselves so others wouldn’t have to touch anything. Everyone was cooperative. Realtors were considered essential workers, so even though our offices were closed we continued doing what Realtors do. We also did many virtual showings, some via FaceTime, and a number of those led to sales. We learned valuable lessons about working efficiently — Houstonians’ resilience and determination are remarkable.”
“COVID did change the showing environment for a while,” says Tillman. “Sellers still sold and buyers still bought, but extra measures were taken to protect everyone. It worked. I had only one transaction where a buyer withdrew an offer after contracting COVID; that buyer later purchased a home.”
‘We Require Buyers to Wear Masks When Entering Our Clients’ Homes’
“Even during COVID we continued showing homes,” says Blum. “During the first three months of the pandemic showings were slow and many realtors experienced their first break in years. After about three months, showings picked up. Realtors resumed in-person showings while providing buyers with masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and shoe covers. We remain cautious and require buyers to wear masks when entering our clients’ homes.”
“The inventory shortage has been especially difficult for my FHA buyers,” says Realtor Trish Figueroa with eXp Realty in Houston and Arizona. “Sellers in this market are less likely to accept FHA offers because of the additional requirements that come with FHA loans. This dynamic is pushing some first-time buyers out of the market. I hope conditions stabilize soon so we can better help first-time homebuyers.”
“In the wake of COVID-19, our Houston housing inventory is at a 13-year low, and the number of available properties has declined 22 percent since 2020,” says JD Adamson, a Realtor with the Adamson Gibson team at Douglas Elliman. “Available properties for purchase are at their lowest point since 1999 in Houston. However, there is some upside for buyers: interest rates remain competitively low, and the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations has rebuilt sellers’ confidence to allow showings. As repairs from Houston’s 2021 winter storm finish, we expect a spike in new-to-market inventory.”
Showing Homes: An ‘Essential Service’
“Because the real estate industry was deemed an essential service in Houston during lockdown, our housing market fared better than many other cities,” says Adamson. “The market also benefits from demand as companies in energy, technology and finance expand or relocate to the region.
“Why Houston? Lower operating costs and no state income tax make Texas attractive to businesses considering relocation, often resulting in reduced payroll expenses and other incentives.”
Census estimates show Texas gained roughly 374,000 residents between July 2019 and July 2020. Many new Texans arrived from California, which saw a net population loss for the first time in over a century. Texas led the nation in net migration.
April 28, 2021 Realty News Report Copyright 2021
For more about Texas real estate, check out the book Houston 2020: America’s Boom Town – An Extreme Close Up by Ralph Bivins.
Photo Credit: By Ralph Bivins, Realty News Report Copyright 2021
File: Almost 50000 Home Showings Weekly in Hot Houston Market