Millennials and other first-time home buyers prefer smaller starter homes over the large homes that developers built throughout California in the past decades. Many Baby Boomers who bought them in the 1980s and 1990s have been met with sluggish demand when they listed their “McMansions” in this seller’s market.
Older homeowners who expected to cash out their large family homes on the eve of retirement have trouble attracting buyers despite tight housing inventory. Young professionals want small homes in hip neighborhoods instead of 2,900 to 4,000 square foot homes with hefty maintenance, taxes and insurance bills that run into the thousands of dollars annually. According to Realtor.com, buyers view listings for large homes 12 to 45 percent less often than other listings. When these large single-family houses do sell, they typically need another 50 days on the market compared to smaller homes. Because large homes require large listing prices, the pool of potential buyers who can afford them is smaller.
Realtor.com also experienced a 2-percent increase in listings of large homes over the past year. Listings for other types of homes have fallen by 10 percent. As owners of big houses pursue buyers, a mortgage adviser from NerdWallet recommended that they close their sales while the market remains hot in general.
Although motivations can be strong when someone sells a home, a person should take the time to consider the details. Legal advice could empower a person when making decisions about a high-value transaction. Consulting an attorney familiar with residential real estate could make a person aware of tax bills that could result and any potential problems with the contract terms. An attorney could act as a negotiator when creating the purchase agreement or inform the person about how to complete property disclosures.