LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Despite the pandemic, Arkansas realtors are seeing lots of buyers ready to settle into a home.
In April, we spoke to realtors who were only doing virtual tours in order to stay safe.
Realtors are back to doing showings in-person with some changes.
“You better be able to make quick decisions, because as soon as the homes come on the market we’re selling ‘em,” Realtor Aylette Roper said.
Roper did a Sunday showing and said there’s been an increase of people ready to put up ‘for sale’ signs.
“We have way more buyers than sellers but for people who have steady employment and are ready to buy, they're doing it with the interest rates as low as they are,” Roper said.
Right now, traditional showings mean wearing face masks, leaving all doors open and lights on for minimal touching, and sign-ins to keep track of who came in the home.
Because of the pandemic, people are more interested in certain features.
“Homes with pools are a hot commodity. Any home that has kind of an oasis yard, if you will, are going. Anything with extra rooms for kids or game rooms. People are more geared toward staying at home,” Roper said.
Pixel Properties realtor Joanna Whites said June sales have been great.
“We’re already seeing a 30% increase in sales for June over May and the month’s not even technically over yet,” White said.
Their showings are also up 12% compared to this time last year.
Now, all she needs is more homes for her buyers.
“We are in need of inventory— I’m running out of houses to sell. If nobody else put their house on the market, we’d be running out of houses to sell in a month and a half in Little Rock,” White said.
She said if you want to sell, call your favorite realtor to get good advice about selling in the current market.