Home Showings Rise With The Sun
The number of real estate showings so far this year in the Chicago area is well above the same period in any of the previous four years, including the pre-COVID months of 2020, a weekly report posted by Midwest Real Estate Data on Feb. 19 shows.
MRED’s data provider, ShowingTime, does not provide raw numbers of real estate showings, only growth lines. Showings are at a level we don’t typically see until the peak real estate season in the Spring.
Rates Huge Factor
Though interest rates have dipped only a little to around 6.5% and are still more than double the alluring 3% rates that fueled the COVID-era housing boom, they were near 8% last year. They have been on the downslope ever since, and many experts predict this to continue. Recent comments by both U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell about now-shrunken inflation and the overall health of the economy suggest rates will continue dropping. Even if buyers are not quite ready to put in a contract, they are using this time to be prepared for when rates fall even more.
Mild Winter Also Big Factor
February has been one of the mildest winters on record, with no snow and warm temperatures. This makes it easier to hold open houses and gets buyers out of their homes more.