Virtually nobody saw the homebuying boom coming out of the fog of the coronavirus pandemic, but by last summer the market had exploded.
A volatile mix caused it to almost spontaneously combust:
Coronavirus-related pauses in construction as well as the manufacture and distribution of building materials sucked down the supply of new houses in the spring of 2020.
That combined head-on with federally engineered low mortgage interest rates that sparked demand — including from investors swooping in to buy houses to turn into rentals.
Face mask requirements and social distancing didn't deter want-to-be-buyers. Safety precautions did make want-to-be sellers reluctant to put their homes on the market — lest they have to let strangers inside to look — further tightening supply.
It's been a wild ride. Here's your guide to the housing market in Oklahoma City. This list will be updated as coverage continues and the market evolves.
— Richard Mize, Oklahoman real estate editor
What do I need to know about the Oklahoma City housing market if I'm looking to buy?
Buying a home? Prepare for a bidding war zone for OKC housing:Forget lowballing. The housing shortage has sellers and buyers both playing hardball. Multiple offers have been the rule, not the exception, at entry-level and move-up price ranges. Houses have been selling for more than their appraised value. Some buyers are buying houses sight unseen.
Homebuyers, throw that 'love letter' in the trash can; it could be a legal liability: Dear want-to-be homebuyer: You may have been told that writing a "love letter" to the owner of a house you really want — to introduce yourself and your family, maybe include a snapshot, and tell how much you love the house — might give you the edge in this housing market. But it also might get you in trouble, so think twice.
OKC-area housing market struggles to cope with unusual demand:The housing market is exploding. Investors, including out-of-state companies paying cash for houses and turning them into rentals, are pushing prices up, as well as people moving to Oklahoma and the rising cost of building materials.
Ready for a custom house? You might not be able to buy one: Homebuilders are turning away customers — for custom-built homes at least — because of uncertainty surrounding soaring lumber prices.
Homebuilding boom is building in Oklahoma City area: New houses built in the COVID-19 era are different. Buyers want double home offices. Outdoor living areas, already in demand, are more popular than ever. "Healthy" homes are moving into the mainstream.
Your new house could cost less if the U.S. and Canada keep working through their lumber trade dispute: Skyrocketing lumber prices have added $10,000 to $15,000 on average to the cost of a new house, so a reduction in duties on Canadian imports has local as well as international impact.
Could OKC run out of houses?: Forecasting "more of the same" of anything from 2020 in 2021 could strike fear in the heart — but not in the housing market, which is ending the year on fire, with scarcely more than a single month of local inventory.
Scammers target renters where it hurts — in the (fake) security deposit: Renters, beware. You could be hit with a scam when looking for a house, thanks to the incredibly tight housing market. Scammers fool renters by posting property listings they don’t own as rent houses — on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace or elsewhere — then collect a security deposit from someone who wants to live in the home, then disappear.
What do I need to know about the Oklahoma real estate market if I'm selling my house?
Through the roofs, Home sales soar to the cloud: Virtual home tours were already taking off before the pandemic, but the coronavirus and its stay-at-home requirements changed how we shop for and sell homes.
It's a seller's market in the Oklahoma City metro area: Metro-area homebuilders are building more houses than they have in seven years, but the market keeps soaking them up, as well as previously owned homes. It doesn't seem to be putting a dent in the housing shortage.
Wear a mask; get the vaccine; the housing market needs more sellers to get out of the house: There's a growing housing shortage, partly because there's a seller shortage, partly because of the coronavirus.
The country is close to running out of houses: Imagine zero houses for sale. You have to imagine it. The market will not allow the housing inventory to fall to zero. Everything has a price. What's yours (even if you're not looking to sell)?
No bargains in this basement: OKC home sales booming on short supply: Homebuyers are rushing up a down staircase: Sales are booming, supply is in the basement, and sellers have the upper hand in negotiations. The Edmond-area market — Edmond, Deer Creek, and Oakdale public school districts — provides a look at the hottest seller's market here in at least a generation, if not ever.
Record home sales defy exclamation: What a year" it was for home sales in Edmond.We saw it coming. Home sales have blazed through the coronavirus pandemic to the point of a shortage, nationally and locally
Get more info at The Oklahoman.
If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.
