Are you entering the housing market? Whether you’re just beginning the process of buying or selling, or you’re already preparing your move with a portable storage container, it never hurts to understand the real estate market. While real estate agents can undoubtedly be invaluable allies during this time, being able to look out for your own interests is priceless. The portable storage experts at Boxwell have compiled some ideas for getting in the know about real estate.
1. Find & Study Historical Data
It makes common sense: to understand where the local housing market is going, you need to review past trends. Online resources like the National Association of Realtors or Zillow provide handy ways for you to see what kind of properties have been selling and the kind of prices they are going for.
2. Isolate the Relevant Market & Area
Once you know how to study the historical data, you will want to zero in on the types of properties that are relevant to you in your target area. Find information on job growth, population, trends for rental properties (if relevant to you), and quality of life rankings. Sites like Roofstock.com can provide these important metrics and more. While this information may seem incredibly top-level, they provide important context for understanding why a specific housing market is experiencing certain trends.
3. Consult Multiple Sources
Whatever online resources you end up using, ensure that you use several so that you can form an unbiased view. Always consider what the source may be trying to sell you. This is an important consideration when consulting real estate agents — experts though they may be. Gather information from a variety of perspectives, like local newspapers, community websites, or even social media, but approach them with a critical perspective.
What kinds of features may affect local property values? How close are the target properties to public transportation, schools, shopping centers and parks? Keep these factors in mind as you look for property value estimates, which can be obtained from online listing databases, property management companies and local real estate agents.
5. Always Compare
As part of your quest to gain a complete and unbiased picture of the target housing market, you should aim to find as many points of comparison as possible. Try to find at least six similar properties that have been recently sold and determine how much they sold for and how long they were on the market. Make sure that they have similar square footage, the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and so on. Feel free to adjust the perceived value based on what you perceive to be pros or cons of specific properties to ensure you are making as direct a comparison as possible.
While housing markets are obviously more complex than the above five points, these tips will get you well on your way towards understanding real estate trends and summaries.
Boxwell provides storage solutions for all kinds of businesses. We achieve this by staying true to our product and really listening to our customers, our partners and each other.
Work with a Boxwell representative to decide on an ideal, moveable storage unit mix, custom colors, door configurations and more. Once the order is placed, your Boxwells will be delivered, installed, and ready to rent. Check out www.boxwell.co or call (303) 416-6280 today!
