How will Fed hikes impact Tulsa real estate market?
TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) — Thursday was a big day for the Tucker family.
"We closed this morning at 9 o’clock," said Steve Tucker. He and his wife bought their retirement home in Sperry, and in the process sold their old home.
We had 20 families look at it throughout four days. The following Monday we had multiple offers and it was a piece of cake," he said.
"It has been an extreme seller's market for the last three years," said Paul Wheeler of Accent Realtors.
But now as the fed hikes interest rates, the tide is slowly turning to a buyers market.
"The buyer demand has pulled back a little because people are afraid. The inventory is starting to pick up a little bit, so we've gone from about 1,500 homes on the market to we're over 2,000 homes now, so what, 30% increase in inventory," he said.
"More houses available at reduced prices, we’re already seeing that, that’s already happened in Tulsa," said financial consultant Steve Glenn, his digital beach zoom backdrop, the perfect analogy for buyers who have a little more breathing room.
"If I’m a consumer and I say, 'Well, maybe I don’t have to be in such a hurry to buy. I got my financing set up and I know my payments, I don’t have to go spend the high dollars, I’m going to wait and see what this house is really going to sell for, let some people come in and bid or it,' That’s what’s happening," he said.
"With less buyers, we've gone to a less intense market so we've gone from 20 to 50 offers on a property at one time, no kidding, to one to 10 offers now," said Wheeler.
As for current mortgage rates?
"We got it at 4.75%," said Tucker.
The Tucker's had perfect timing, locking in their rate before the most recent hike by the Fed.
"Since they raised the rate yesterday rates have really declined just a little bit. We've kind of found a new normal, about 5 1/2% up from about 3%," said Wheeler.
