Where Am I Going To Go?
There's a method realtors use to accumulate business called Circle Prospecting. Circle Prospecting is when a real estate agent calls neighborhood homeowners about a recent sale and asks them for business. I've used this strategy on several occasions. One answer I tend to get is "if I sell my house, where am I going to go?"
Me getting this response means a few things. For one, that may be a polite way of people telling me to "get lost!" :).
Secondly, that's an indication of what's going on in the market. People are reluctant to buy because of an expectation for home prices to drop in the near future.
According to Altos Research, demand and supply is low. (Altos Research , 2023). The number of active listings grew at only 1.3% since last year at this time (Altos Research , 2023). Which means things are not really "getting better". There's only miniscule changes when it comes to changes in market conditions.
Are you someone who has the "where am I going to go" mindset. The first step is to think positive. It's possible for you to purchase a home in this market. There are even down payment assistance programs that will either pay all or at least 3% of your down payment.
Another thing you can do is ask your realtor how long is the house you're interested in being on the market. If longer than 30 days, that gives you some leverage to offer less than the asking price. Or perhaps you can ask for some seller concessions if you find anything that needs to be repaired and replaced.
Although there is limited demand and supply in the real estate market there's still transactions happening everyday. You still have somewhere to go.
Source
Altos Research, October 23, 2023, If Homebuyer demand is so weak, why aren't home prices falling?, [YouTube] https://youtu.be/VLD10ybr8Qg?s
i=SvNh5TmMEz7doKVT