Zillow says list your home during this month

A new take on the Spring real estate market

According to a March article in Better Homes & Gardens, "For years, the conventional wisdom in the residential real estate market was to list your home for sale in the spring. Especially for those that would appeal to families, this season was considered the "right time" to put a home on the market to capture the spring buyers looking to settle into a new house before the start of the next school year.

But for a nearly $8,000 boost in your sales price, a new Zillow analysis of the 2024 real estate market reports that the peak period for listing a home was the first two weeks in June, a month after previous years' optimal times."

Why is that? Read on below.

"The main reason for this shift appears to be mortgage interest rates, which declined last year in conjunction with the sales increase. Though the dip wasn't major, going from 6.79% to 6.67%, it was enough to motivate buyers to take the next step and commit to the largest purchase of their lives.

The Federal Reserve will again have a significant impact on the real estate market this year, according to Zillow Chief Economist Skylar Olsen.

The old logic was that sellers could earn a premium by listing in late spring when their home would be on the top of the pile of listings when search activity was at its peak,' she said. 'Now, with persistently low inventory, mortgage rate fluctuations make their own seasonality. It is almost certain the Federal Reserve will push back any interest-rate cuts to mid-2024 at the earliest. If mortgage rates follow, that could bring another surge of buyers later this year.' "

Head to Better Homes & Gardens to read about the factors that can be helpful in attracting buyers:

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Consider us at APOTHIKA as your listing agents. We do more for you to get your house sold faster and for more money!

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Unmask the Lone Ranger- Better Homes & Garden’s summer cocktail for 2024

Better Homes & Gardens “polled 23 beverage experts from coast to coast, who have a pulse on the scene” getting feedback using the words “light and airy” and “tequila.” The Lone Ranger, showing up on TikTok in March, sounded like the perfect combination. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

Ice cubes
1 1/2 fluid ounces blanco silver tequila
1 fluid ounce lemon juice
1/2 fluid ounce Rich Simple Syrup (see how to make, above)
2 fluid ounces sparkling rose prosecco wine, chilled
Lemon twist

Directions

In an ice-filled cocktail shaker, combine tequila, lemon juice, and Rich Simple Syrup. Cover and shake until very cold. Strain into an ice-filled Collins glass. Top with rosé. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Learn more why the Lone Ranger is trending and ways to vary the recipe:

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Peachy ideas for flowers

When you live in the Peach State, incorporating peachy-colors in decorating is a fun proposition. And since Pantone’s color for 2024 is Peach Fuzz, it’s an on-trend design choice.

Growing on Mary Beth's balcony right now are these stunning Solenia® Apricot - Rieger Begonia

This year’s Pantone Color of the year is Peach Fuzz. It’s an exciting color to introduce in decorating your home’s interior, but gardeners and landscapers are excited too, because, according to BH&G, it “captures a color that’s been recently trending in plant breeding—a pastel pinkish orange that’s equal parts romantic, unexpected, and versatile.”

BH&G has grown a collection of peach-colored flowers and foliage in their test garden and you can try to incorporate some of their peachiness in your garden this summer.

'Fresco Apricot' Coneflower

PHOTO: COURTESY OF MONROVIA.COM BY BRANDON FRIEND-SOLIS

According to BH&G, "From late spring to frost, the frilly flowers of 'Fresco Apricot' coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) bring tons of color—and butterflies—to garden beds. They also make stunning cut flowers. The pollinator-friendly plant gets about 2 feet tall and prefers a sunny spot in Zones 4-9."

'Peach Julep' Coleus

BH&G says that "Brightening up shady areas can be a challenge, but it's one that this coleus from Terra Nova rises to without much fuss. The easy-care coleus’s peach-colored leaves are strikingly outlined in red and green. Reaching 14 inches tall and 12 inches wide, this coleus works best as an annual plant in containers or planting beds in full sun."

Check out all the peachy plants at Better Homes & Gardens:

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