The president of the Iowa Association of Realtors says the changing seasons are prompting a slowdown in home sales in the state, but Scott Wendl says it’s nothing like the recession that hit the real estate industry in 2008.
“Nationally, we actually have a shortage of homes that are available,” Wendl says. “New construction is down compared to what it was back then. Qualifying for a home is a little bit tougher, so you have better buyers out there. We’ve heard that there’s a recession coming sometime soon, but the immediate signs don’t really point to that based on what the housing market’s doing.”
Wendl has been a realtor in the Des Moines area for 24 years. He says 92 percent of all property sales in the U.S. are handled by a realtor.
“There’s also more realtors now,” Wendl says. “We’ve got the most in the Des Moines market, the most in the Iowa market and nationally, we’re at 1.4 million, which is more than it was back pre-recession time.”
The latest data from the Iowa Association of Realtors on home sales in the state indicates sellers are getting about 98 percent of their asking price. The median sale price has been increasing over the past year as well.