How to Write Competitive Offers in a Hot Real Estate Market
Victoria is amidst a severe supply shortage in the single-family home market. Listings are down nearly 30% and demand is way up when compared to the same period last year.
The real estate board recently stated, “This represents the lowest inventory of active listings at month-end in at least the last 25 years”.
It is currently commonplace to see bidding wars and sales well over the asking price.
In this market, every detail in your offer makes an impact on whether it is accepted. Here are three tips to ensure your offer is as strong as possible:
- Submit an unconditional offer – sellers will often accept unconditional offers over conditional offers even if the sale price is 3-5% less.
- Give the sellers their EXACT preferred closing dates – making the transaction convenient for the seller makes them more likely to accept your offer.
- Shorten the subject period – 8-10 business days is the typical length for a subject period but reducing this to 4-5 days will make your offer stand out.
In the current market, being quick to act is crucial. The average number of days on the market has reduced significantly in January 2021 as buyers get a head-start on the spring homebuying season. This demand is fueled by rock-bottom interest rates and a preference for single-family homes triggered by COVID.
in the table below, you’ll notice there are significantly more sold than pending properties – this is due to seasonality as January is not a popular month to move homes.
Sales and pending prices above the asking price are becoming more common. You can see the homes most recently listed are often selling for above their asking price. This indicates that the market is heating up in anticipation of a strong spring home-buyers season.
Oak Bay January 2021 Sold & Pending Listings (Single-family)
| wdt_ID | Status | Address | Price List | Price Sold | List vs. Sold | Beds | Baths | SqFt Fin Total | Year Built (Est) | Lot Size SqFt | Date Listed | Days On Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | P | 591 Island Rd | 3,600,000 | 3,850,000 | 250,000 | 4 | 3 | 3,193 | 1986 | 16,900 | 2021-01-28 | 0 |
| 2 | P | 3275 Ripon Rd | 2,100,000 | 2,190,000 | 90,000 | 3 | 4 | 2,865 | 1957 | 23,925 | 2021-01-18 | 1 |
| 3 | P | 3466 Plymouth Rd | 1,249,000 | 1,215,000 | -34,000 | 3 | 2 | 1,640 | 1959 | 14,649 | 2021-01-15 | 14 |
| 4 | P | 836 Monterey Ave | 999,000 | 1,065,000 | 66,000 | 3 | 1 | 1,268 | 1935 | 5,472 | 2021-01-15 | 4 |
| 5 | P | 3300 Exeter Rd | 2,380,000 | 2,250,000 | -130,000 | 5 | 5 | 4,429 | 1957 | 20,398 | 2021-01-14 | 9 |
| 6 | P | 2161 Beaverbrooke St | 1,350,000 | 1,310,000 | -40,000 | 3 | 4 | 1,933 | 2016 | 3,049 | 2021-01-08 | 11 |
| 7 | P | 2776 Thompson Ave | 1,295,000 | 1,350,000 | 55,000 | 5 | 3 | 2,305 | 1936 | 6,850 | 2021-01-06 | 12 |
| 8 | P | 2545 Beach Dr | 1,399,000 | 1,611,000 | 212,000 | 4 | 3 | 2,994 | 1988 | 7,500 | 2021-01-04 | 4 |
| 9 | P | 117 Barkley Terr | 2,359,000 | 2,320,000 | -39,000 | 3 | 4 | 3,666 | 1962 | 11,665 | 2021-01-03 | 18 |
| 10 | P | 1552 Clive Dr | 2,150,000 | 2,050,000 | -100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2,824 | 1948 | 5,000 | 2021-01-01 | 25 |
If you’d like help navigating and capitalizing on the current real estate market, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Dustin Miller is an advocate for transparent real estate data and prides himself on having Vancouver Island’s most popular sold home database on the internet. If you’d like to search for recently sold home prices in your neighbourhood, use our interactive map feature.
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