Something Different<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
After spending most of her life in New York City, Katie Krimer wanted a change of pace and scenery. In 2021, she moved to the smaller, less expensive city of Philadelphia. Not long after, a new world called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, she lives on \u201cSleepy Goose Farm,\u201d a nickname she and her husband coined for their 3.4-acre property in Ulster County, N.Y.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The home and attached barn, built in the 1850s, sit far back from the road, surrounded by trees. Krimer and her husband toured the home virtually. As her agent carried the camera through the grand entryway and up the wooden stairs, she knew immediately that she needed to make the move. It\u2019s a far cry from the cobblestone streets of Philadelphia or the skyline of New York. \u201cI knew I wanted quietness, and I knew I wanted more nature,\u201d Krimer says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Overall, NAR\u2019s report found that affordability, proximity to family and more space were leading external factors for buyers. While these factors are consistent with previous years, a deeper look at one of the most lucrative groups of buyers reveals an extreme shift: Repeat buyers made major life swaps, says Jessica Lautz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research. \u201cWhen you look at your typical repeat buyer, they\u2019re moving at a median distance of 90 miles,\u201d much farther than in past research, she says. \u201cThis implies that people are looking for different things when it comes to neighborhood choices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman, Philadelphia-based anthropologist and founder of THINK.urban, the journey starts within.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA lot of people felt a certain urgency for purpose in life, and to change the way they were living,\u201d Zimmerman says of the pandemic-induced changes. \u201cThis was a cumulative and collective existential crisis. When you\u2019re faced with something really, really up close \u2014\u2018Am I happy?\u2019\u2014you\u2019re forced to actually revisit it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zimmerman cites the overall change in mindset from \u201cworking to live\u201d toward more purpose-driven lifestyle decisions as a key shift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No Longer Bound<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Clearing the path for a change in mindset was the domination of the remote and hybrid work model. The virtual work-style impacted nearly 30 million workers through 2021, according to a report from the U.S. Census Bureau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe whole landscape of my industry has been completely transformed by COVID,\u201d said Krimer, a licensed therapist who now works remotely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Relatedly, NAR\u2019s report sites that 33% of buyers listed convenience to a job as a key factor in their neighborhood choice, compared to 42% the year before. \u201cThe commute time in the laundry list of neighborhood choices has moved down the list,\u201d says Lautz. \u201cPeople\u2019s convenience to their job is less important because you can easily work from home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And while migration has slowed since the height of the pandemic, NAR\u2019s latest Migration Trends Report found that in 2022, towns like Ocala, Fla.; Tallahassee, Fla.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Savannah, Ga., continued to gain buyers and topped the list for net inward migration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey can work remotely, and they see Charlotte as being an incredible city to live in,\u201d says Tiffany Johannes, CRS, GRI, general manager and broker in charge at RE\/MAX Executive Carolinas in Charlotte. Buyers are drawn to the area\u2019s affordability, entertainment, parks and quality schools. \u201cCharlotte today sees about 100-plus people a day moving to our area,\u201d adds Johannes, 2023 president of the Canopy REALTOR\u00ae Association.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Much of the migration has been to the suburbs and beyond. Overall, NAR analysis shows, small towns saw a 9 percentage point increase in sales, and rural areas saw an increase of 6 percentage points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen people move further out, it\u2019s not necessarily just about having that extra land,\u201d Johannes says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Affordability was a factor even before the pandemic. And now many rural and suburban buyers are looking for places where they can have more curated and personal experiences. \u201cThey are finding value in a home that can have a workshop attached or a bigger garage, depending on what their hobbies are,\u201d she notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These days, when she\u2019s not working or renovating her fixer-upper home, Krimer finds balance through activities like painting, hiking and birdwatching. \u201cI\u2019m already starting to think about what landscaping stuff I can get into,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Buyers like Katie Krimer are bringing new life to smaller towns, observes Chuck Petersheim, home builder and founder of Catskills Farms in Hudson Valley, N.Y.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After riding the wave of early pandemic uncertainty, Petersheim could see that buyers were investing big in outlier locations like Hudson Valley. \u201cA little ripple became a wave, became a tidal wave … became a tsunami,\u201d he says. Since the start of the pandemic, Catskills Farms has generated more than $40 million in sales, up from $8 million in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Areas like the Hudson Valley, once known for seasonal visitors, suddenly had a population looking to stay. According to a report from the Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, for the first time in more than a decade, the nine-county region gained more people in 2019\u20132020 than it lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t clear until the following year that this was sustainable,\u201d says Petersheim of the sprawl he first felt in 2020. But as he built for full-time residents, new grocery stores, shops, and restaurants sprang up to meet the added demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other smaller or rural areas like Williamson County, surrounding the booming tech hub of Austin, Texas, are also ramping up development activities to meet the needs of incoming buyers. The area\u2019s strong internet broadband capabilities and home affordability placed it among areas like Forsythe County, Ga.; Douglas County, Colo.; and Delaware County, Ohio, on NAR\u2019s list of top work-from-home counties\u2014all areas that have continued to outpace the average in their states and across the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI knew I wanted quietness, and I knew I wanted more nature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2014Katie Krimer<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n According to Brandy Wuensch, GRI, broker-owner of City View Realty, there\u2019s one other benefit that makes areas like Williamson County the apple of everyone\u2019s eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor new construction in Austin, you\u2019re looking at builds of 18\u201324 months, whereas in Cedar Park or Leander in Williamson County, builders were able to turn over new-construction homes in six to eight months,\u201d she said. This opened the gates for first-time buyers eyeing new homes without the high price tag or longer build times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s not all: New neighborhoods in Williamson County tout solar panels, automated home features and high-fiber cabling. And developments like the 183 Revitalization project in Cedar Park are breaking ground for mini city centers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Navigating through change isn\u2019t new to Julia Hoagland, CRE. The New York broker and leader of the Julia Hoagland Team, Compass, forged through the aftermath of 9\/11, the 2008 market crash, and now the COVID-19 pandemic. \u201cDemand doesn\u2019t stop accruing, it just stops executing while things are uncertain,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere will always be people who want the dynamic nature of city centers,\u201d Lautz says, \u201cwho wants to be able to pop down to their coffee shop or walk down the block to their favorite bar.\u201d Real estate practitioners can stay ahead by broadening their marketing approach and tapping into the benefits of technology. \u201cOur members have beefed up their skills in how they\u2019re showcasing homes. I do think it matters more in a transitioning market,\u201d she says, noting that more than 60% of sellers who moved 51\u2013100 miles from their previous residence used a different real estate agent than the one they\u2019d used before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The way to stay valuable is to stay in the know. \u201cEducation, education, education,\u201d Johaness says. Also, \u201cget clients up to speed on what\u2019s happening in communities they\u2019re interested in,\u201d she suggests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFollow the life changes of your clients. Identify which markets people, in theory, could move to,\u201d Hoagland says. \u201cReach out to brokers in those areas, and ask to set up a referral relationship. We do a lot of referral business locally, nationally and internationally because we like to help people and, also, it\u2019s good business for us. To the extent that we can embrace the dreams of our buyers and our contacts, even if they\u2019re not in our market, that\u2019s going to be meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And it might not be long before grateful buyers are knocking on her door again. \u201cWhat we\u2019re feeling on the ground,\u201d Hoagland says, \u201cis that people are Image by Sam Williams<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a9National Association of REALTORS\u00ae Pandemic-era migration has caused a ripple in cities and towns across America. Will it continue? Since the beginning of time, humans have moved from one place to the next. Mass migrations like the Gold Rush of the 1800s and the Great Migration of the 1900s were led by populations motivated by historic events, urgent needs, … <\/p>\n![\"Top](\"https:\/\/cdn.nar.realtor\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/inline_paragraph_image\/public\/rm-top-10-migration-stages-spring-2023.png?itok=zbA3u0Lx\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nIf You Build, They Will Come<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Adapting to the Changes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.anthonydidonato.net\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/guy-5530753_1280-1024x682.jpg\")
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Reprinted with permission<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"