Monday, December 21, 2020 / by Amy McLeod
In normal circumstances, selling a house involves interacting with a lot of people. In-person house tours, roundtable closings, and handshakes are all standard formalities.
But in a world rocked by the COVID-19 pandemic, safety and social distancing are a must, and real estate professionals and sellers have had to adapt to a new way of doing business. That means altering how they approach open houses, closings, and even personal greetings. (We're all too familiar with the elbow bump.)
“It has been amazing to see how quickly our industry has evolved,” says Tricia Hausler, director of sales for Lexington Homes. “We have banded together throughout the many facets of our industry to create positive solutions that allow us to continue to comfortably and safely serve our prospective clients and buyers.”
Many of these safety solutions—like self-guided house tours while wearing personal protective equipment—are still in place in states seein ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homeowners, home sellers, selling a house, coronavirus, covid19
Monday, July 27, 2020 / by Amy McLeod
The residential real estate market is remaining resilient as the country still struggles to beat the COVID-19 pandemic. Three separate reports recently revealed how the housing market is still showing growth. Here’s a look at each one.
1. Ivy Zelman’s Real Estate Broker Survey
The survey explains that purchaser demand remains strong:
“This month’s overall homebuyer demand rating…was easily the strongest sequential gain in our survey history…Strength continues to be led by the entry-level…While high-end demand is less robust in an absolute sense, there has also been relative improvement, with contacts attributing incremental improvement to the stock market’s rebound, record low mortgage rates and luxury customers trading out of high-priced cities.”
2. The National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index
The index reveals that builder co ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homeowners, homebuyers, home values, home prices, housing market updates, coronavirus, covid19
Monday, July 13, 2020 / by Amy McLeod
The housing market is back—and then some.
Despite the crippling and ongoing coronavirus pandemic, millions out of work, a recession, a national reckoning over systematic racism, and a highly contentious presidential election just around the corner, the residential real estate market is staging an astonishing rebound.
Median home prices shot up 6.2% year over year on realtor.com® in the week ending June 27, according to weekly realtor.com data. Homes are selling faster than they did in 2019, when no one had heard of COVID-19. And bidding wars are back as first-time and trade-up buyers who have lost out on other homes slug it out.
"The housing recovery has been nothing short of remarkable," says Ali Wolf, chief economist of Meyers Research, a national real estate consultancy. "The expectation was that housing would be crushed. It was—for about two months—and then it came roaring back.”
It's a far cry from the Great Recession of more than a de ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homeowners, homebuyers, home sellers, home values, home prices, housing market updates, coronavirus, covid19
Friday, June 19, 2020 / by Amy McLeod
Wednesday, June 24, 2020
3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Trying to get your teen to read this summer? This casual chat group might be just the ticket to get them interested! Each week it focuses on a different book, book series, or book type. The time is split between trivia (using Kahoot), discussion of the week’s focus book, and books in general. Sign up HERE to find out what we will be discussing. You will get the Zoom ID by email the day before each meeting.
Have questions? Call 503-588-6315 or email at library@cityofsalem.net
Courtesy of Amy McLeod, The McLeod Group Network
Photo credit: cityofsalem.net
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, exploring salem oregon, coronavirus, covid19, quaran-teen book chat
Monday, June 15, 2020 / by Amy McLeod
The country is starting to reopen, but we’re still living in a pandemic—and the CDC’s official guidance is that staying home is the best way to keep yourself and others safe.
But after months of being cooped up at home, you and your loved ones may be dealing with a serious case of cabin fever.
If you’re desperate for a change of scenery but not ready to leave home, there are plenty of ways to add novelty to your space and create an appealing "staycation."
“With less traveling occurring due to the coronavirus, planning a staycation is an ideal way to create memories and allow for self-care,” says Jessica Salomone, owner and principal interior designer at Lotus + Lilac Design Studio.
We talked to experts about what you can do—on any budget—to turn your home into an escape from your usual routine. Check out these clever ideas.
1. Upgrade your outdoor space with cafe lights
Photo by Flores Artscape
Quick, inexp ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, coronavirus, covid19, staycation, vacation at home
