The Spring Real Estate Market is Coming – Are You Ready? 🏡

As the days get longer and the snow starts to melt, one thing is certain—the busy spring real estate season is right around the corner! 🌷🏡

Whether you’re thinking about buying, selling, or simply curious about the market, now is the time to start preparing. Spring typically brings increased activity, more listings, and eager buyers, making it one of the best times of the year for real estate.

Here’s what you need to know (and what to do next) to stay ahead of the market!

🏡 What to Expect in the 2025 Spring Market

✔️ More Inventory – Many homeowners wait until spring to list their homes, meaning more options for buyers. If you’re selling, competition will increase—so proper pricing and preparation are key.

✔️ Increased Buyer Demand – Warmer weather and tax refunds often bring out more buyers, leading to competitive offers.

✔️ Faster Moving Market – Homes tend to sell quicker in spring, so it’s important to be ready to act fast when the right opportunity arises.

✔️ Mortgage Rates & Market Trends – If you’re considering a move, it’s crucial to stay informed about interest rates and home prices. We’re keeping a close eye on the latest trends for you!

📌 Selling This Spring? Here’s How to Get Ready NOW!

If you’re planning to sell, preparation starts now. Here’s how to make sure your home stands out:

✨ Declutter & Deep Clean – A well-presented home sells faster! Start early by decluttering, organizing, and deep cleaning.

✨ Boost Curb Appeal – First impressions matter! Plan for fresh landscaping, a clean entryway, and minor exterior touch-ups.

✨ Pre-Listing Prep – Consider minor upgrades, staging, and getting a professional market analysis to price your home strategically.

✨ Marketing Matters – Spring is competitive, so a strong marketing plan will help your home attract serious buyers. (We’ve got you covered!)

💡 Thinking of Buying? Be Market-Ready!

Spring can be competitive for buyers, so getting prepared now can give you an edge:

✅ Get Pre-Approved – Knowing your budget before shopping ensures you’re ready to make a strong offer.

✅ Clarify Your Wishlist – With more homes hitting the market, defining your must-haves vs. nice-to-haves will save you time.

✅ Work with a Pro – A fast-moving market means you need an expert who can guide you and act quickly on new listings.

📢 What Real Estate Tips Do YOU Want to See?

As the spring market heats up, we want to provide the most valuable insights for you! What real estate topics would you love to learn more about?

📌 Market updates & price trends
📌 Best ways to get top dollar for your home
📌 First-time buyer tips & strategies
📌 Interest rate predictions & financing options
📌 Hidden gems & up-and-coming neighborhoods

Let us know in the comments or send us a message! We’re here to help you make the most of this spring market. 🌟

🏡 Ready to Make a Move This Spring? Let’s Talk!

Whether you’re buying or selling, having a trusted real estate expert on your side makes all the difference. We’d love to chat about your goals and put a plan in place for your success.

📩 Reach out today to get started before the spring rush!

2023 vs. 2024: A Look at Our Local Real Estate Market Trends 📊🏡

As we transition into 2025, it's essential to reflect on the past two years in our local real estate market. Understanding how home prices, sales activity, and market trends have shifted can help buyers, sellers, and agents make informed decisions.

Let's dive into the key statistics and compare 2023 vs. 2024 to see what changed, what stayed the same, and what these trends might indicate for the future.

🏠 Home Prices on the Rise

One of the most noticeable trends is the increase in home prices from 2023 to 2024.

✅ Average Sale Price:

• 2023: $468,722
• 2024: $514,991
• Increase of 9.9%

✅ Median Sale Price:

• 2023: $391,000
• 2024: $445,000
• Increase of 13.8%

This upward trend suggests a stronger seller’s market, with increased demand pushing prices higher.

📉 Sales Activity: A Slight Slowdown

While home prices increased, the number of homes sold slightly declined compared to 2023.

✅ Total Homes Sold:

• 2023: 356
• 2024: 361 (Slight Increase)

✅ Sale-to-List Price Ratio:

• 2023: 95.81%
• 2024: 95.47%

While the ratio stayed nearly the same, it suggests buyers were still negotiating, though not significantly below asking prices.

However, the total number of homes listed increased from 473 in 2023 to 545 in 2024, meaning more inventory was available.

⏳ Days on Market (DOM) Increased

Homes took longer to sell in 2024 than in 2023.

✅ Average Days on Market (All Homes):

• 2023: 64 days
• 2024: 75 days

✅ Median Days on Market:

• 2023: 26 days
• 2024: 37 days

This increase in DOM suggests buyers had more options and took longer to decide, which aligns with the increased inventory levels.

📊 Expired Listings & Market Shifts

The percentage of expired listings also increased slightly from 6.98% in 2023 to 8.26% in 2024, meaning more homes sat on the market without selling.

This could indicate higher pricing expectations from sellers or a shift toward a more balanced market rather than a purely seller-driven market.

💡 Key Takeaways

✔️ Home Prices Increased – Strong demand pushed up prices in 2024.
✔️ Slightly More Homes Sold – But with longer days on the market.
✔️ More Inventory & Expired Listings – Giving buyers more choices and negotiation power in 2024.
✔️ Balanced Market Ahead? – The increase in DOM and expired listings suggests the market could be shifting toward stabilization rather than extreme seller control.

🏡 What Does This Mean for 2025?

If you're thinking about selling, 2025 could still be a great time to list—especially before inventory builds up further. Pricing your home correctly will be key to selling efficiently.

If you're looking to buy, the market might be shifting slightly in your favor, allowing more time to explore options and negotiate better deals.

Need expert advice? Let’s chat about your real estate goals for 2025! 📩🏡

Call our team today at 307-764-6222 to get started!

🔐 Unlock Contract Confidence with Attorney-Approved Training

If you’re a new real estate agent, one of the most daunting tasks can be mastering the contracts and documents involved in a real estate transaction. Understanding every detail and confidently explaining it to your clients is critical in protecting their best interests—and your reputation as an agent. That’s why I created the Contract Confidence course, part of my Agent Annie training program.

This isn’t just any contract training. Contract Confidence has been attorney-approved by none other than Mike Lansing, legal counsel to the Wyoming Association of REALTORS®. Mike reviewed nearly every lesson, ensuring the material is comprehensive, clear, and accurate. This gives you not only the knowledge but also the peace of mind knowing you’re working with expert-approved information. ✅

Here’s what you’ll gain from the Contract Confidence course:

➡️ Clear explanations of each key document, from buyer/seller agreements to disclosures and addendums.
➡️ Attorney-reviewed resources and templates, so you can feel confident when preparing and reviewing contracts.
➡️ A detailed breakdown of provisions and contingencies that protect your clients and help them make informed decisions.
➡️ Guidance on essential documents like earnest money processes and title commitments, so you can handle every part of the transaction with ease and professionalism.

Whether you’re a Wyoming agent needing a state-specific version or an agent from another state looking for a comprehensive foundation, this course has you covered. 🚀

No more second-guessing yourself when walking your clients through contracts! With Contract Confidence, you’ll not only understand every document but also be able to explain them to clients in a way that builds trust and delivers exceptional service. 💯

If you’re ready to gain expertise, build your confidence, and provide your clients with a seamless experience, this course is for you! ✨

✨ Want to avoid the most common legal mistakes that can trip up new agents? 🎥 I’ve got a special freebie for you! Grab my video training: “The Most Common Legal Mistakes Agents Make (and How to Avoid Them!)” 🚀

➡️ Click here to get instant access to the training and start protecting yourself and your clients today!

It’s officially spooky season, and we’ve got some exciting things happening around here! 👻

First up, Cam is so excited to be selling pumpkins right outside our office! 🎃 These adorable pumpkins are perfect for carving or decorating your home this Halloween season, and the best part? They’re available anytime with our honesty box system! Feel free to stop by and grab one (or a few!) for your home.

But that’s not all—mark your calendars for October 31st! We’ll be taking part in Powell’s downtown trick-or-treating event from 4-5pm, and we’d love to see you there! 🍬 The kiddos will be out in full force, handing out candy to all the little trick-or-treaters, and we’re giving away free pumpkins for those who stop by to say hello. 🎃✨

So grab your costumes, bring the family, and join us for some Halloween fun. Whether you’re looking for pumpkins, sweet treats, or just a chance to celebrate the season, we can’t wait to see you!

Happy Halloween! 🎃👻💀

Park County Market Update: Quarter 3 Comparison

We’ve just wrapped up Quarter 3 for 2024, and the numbers are in! Here’s how the real estate market in Park County compares to last year:

• New Listings are up 11%, with 163 new homes hitting the market this year compared to 147 in 2023.
• Closed Home Sales saw a 12% increase, with 114 homes sold in Q3 2024 versus 102 last year.
• Sold Price vs. List Price dipped slightly from 96% to 95%, meaning sellers are still securing close to their asking prices.
• Average Days on Market increased by 13%, from 63 days to 71 days this year, so homes are taking a bit longer to sell.
• Average Sold Price saw a significant jump—up 14%—from $453,917 to $518,267.

The market remains strong, with both listings and sales on the rise, along with an increase in property values. If you're curious about what this could mean for your home or are thinking about buying or selling, feel free to reach out. We're always here to help with any questions you may have!

Change is upon us, agents! If you're not feeling confident about the upcoming changes, you're in the right place. Our new mini course regarding the NAR settlement related changes has been attorney approved and will be launching very soon!

In this course we’ll be reviewing the contract documents that have either changed, are new to us, or we simply may need to change our script when explaining them to a client.

What's included?

- 9 on-demand video lessons

- 5 attorney-approved contract scripts (real estate brokerage disclosure, customer disclosure agreement, buyer agency, listing agreement, and the contract to buy and sell real estate)

- Alternative scripts for the buyer agency agreement

- Broker Compensation Notice of Industry Changes doc and script for sellers
- Buyer Guide

- Seller Guide

- Email templates

We'll teach you WHEN and HOW to confidently talk about the upcoming changes with ease.

To learn more, visit us at www.askagentannie.com or follow us on social @askagentannie!

Questions? My door is always open!

Amanda Zaddock

amanda@elitewestrealty.com

307-296-6135

We are experiencing some new changes in our industry that are important for buyers and sellers to be aware of.

First, a seller or listing broker is no longer required to offer compensation to the broker that brings the buyer. In the past, in order to have a property listed in the MLS, meaning it’s shown to all the local agents and pushed to all the sites such as Zillow and realtor.com, the seller or listing brokerage was *required* to offer compensation to the broker who was working with the buyer. 

Well, we are no longer required to do so.

We can still incentivize buyers and buyer's agents by offering compensation though, and the amount itself can now be negotiated within the contract, becoming another negotiation factor between the buyer and seller.

The biggest questions I have are, will the number of showings we receive on your property be a direct correlation to a commission being offered or not? Or if it’s not being offered, will they still look regardless and then potentially negotiate it into the contract?

Now, this is all new to us so I won’t be able to answer these questions or say what’s common in our market until we’re down the road a bit. 

Next, we will now be required to have a written agreement with a buyer PRIOR to showing homes. We've always believed meeting with a new buyer prior to looking at homes ensures our buyers have a great buying experience, so this change won't affect us too much. It's in the buyers best interest to fully understand the process and start at step one, versus jumping into looking at homes and then having to backtrack.

These changes must be implemented by August 17th, 2024 at the latest.

Questions? I'd be happy to answer. Reach out anytime!

Amanda Zaddock

amanda@elitewestrealty.com

307-296-6135

The market has sure picked up from Q1!

We went from 111 new listings in Q1 to 174 in Q2.

The number of closed homes went from 49 in Q1 to 95 in Q2.

The average days on market decreased by 24 days! It was 87 in Q1 to 63 in Q2.

And lastly, the average sales price increased from $504,853 in Q1 to $516,338 in Q2.

As far as year over year goes, it's a similar comparison. Please see the snapshot below for more details.

Questions or thoughts? Feel free to reach out- we'd be happy to chat.

Amanda

The market is sure feeling more active then it did this time last year and the number of new listings and our office's under contract stats will confirm.

It seems as if we're past the adjustment period- it was quite the adjustment going from the covid market, to the post covid wind-down, followed by the interest rate increases. 

As far as the rates go, and per the Freddie Mac economists, they've been showing little movement, hovering around 6.8%. Since the start of 2024, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has not reached seven percent but has not dropped below 6.6 percent either. While incoming economic signals indicate lower rates of inflation, we do not expect rates will decrease meaningfully in the near-term. On the plus side, inventory is improving somewhat, which should help temper home price growth.

Source: https://www.freddiemac.com/pmms

Questions or thoughts? Feel free to reach out- we'd be happy to chat.

Amanda