Homebuyers, property owners, renters, and realtors alike are all watching to see how COVID-19 will affect their business. Everyone is adjusting to a new normal, and real estate is not exempt from this reality.
“The real estate industry is on pause just like everybody else,” said Gail Fattizzi, president of the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors.
She said realtors across the valley are still open for business but creating new rules to keep everyone safe.
“Real estate is an emotional transaction for the most part,” Fattizzi said. “So it helps to create those relationships in person. It's a little bit of a different process now trying to do everything virtually.”
Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, she said.
“It’s bringing people back to having actual conversations which I think is a positive outcome of this, if nothing else,” Fattizzi said.
In the Hudson Valley, Fattizzi expects that home sales will drop significantly.
“The number of new contracts that will be seen will be definitely noticeably lower because we're not seeing very many new transactions put together right now,” she said.
For those homeowners who are thinking about refinancing their mortgages, Fattizzi had this to say.
“It could be a very good opportunity … for people to do that, depending on the interest rate that they have and what's available right now. Rates are good for the most part,” she said.
She is reminding potential buyers to lock in a rate they like, and be prepared to do it quickly.
“They need to have all of their documents in so that basically their refinance is approved and ready to go,” she said.
She is resolute that the industry will be strong when COVID-19 is behind us.
“Once things do open up, there's going to be a surge of activity,” she said. “There was a very strong buyer pool out there before the COVID shutdown so those people -- many of them will still be in the market.”
Now might be a good time to refinance that mortgage, but like Fattizzi said, act quickly. If you look through a few real estate apps, you’ll see listings continue to come in by the numbers, a sign that business is moving forward.