January 2022

To all those circling birds out there

January 31, 2022Continuing the conversation about the “lack of inventory” driving the real estate market. Go to https://www.brezsnyassociates.com/blog to catch up. Today’s column goes out to all those circling birds out there. That’s the name I’ve given to all the first-time buyer/flyers, empty nesters and other birds of a feather who are desperately trying to find a place to land in what is arguably the most difficult “sellers’ market” ever. Right now, they’re circling overhead in widening gyres and in temporary holding patterns, scanning the horizon with...

Inventory, how low can it go?

January 26, 2022If I was trying to come up with one, single compelling reason to point to as the driving force behind this longest running, highest flying “up” cycle we’ve been on since March of 2013 (when all of a sudden, it felt like the market had been shot out of a cannon!) I’d have to go with “low inventory”. Call it lack of supply, paucity of listings, insufficient quantity of properties, scant number of available homes, or simply low inventory it all sounds like the same...

What’s wrong with this picture?

January 24, 2022Where were we?.... Oh yeah, Zillow just pitched its new Zillow Offers program. their one-stop shopping platform designed to make selling your home fast, simple and easy as pie. To catch up on the conversation go to brezsnyassociates.com/2021/04/ Here’s the hype: “Zillow allows customers to request an instant offer and sell directly to Zillow. They’re able to eliminate the time and resources required to prepare and list a home, including showings and minimizing in-person interaction. The service also provides certainty about price and closing date.”...

Busy trying to “reinvent how real estate gets done”

January 17, 2022We’re talking about the battle raging between old-school, relationship-based real estate and new web- based platforms that are highly transactional by nature and busy trying to “reinvent how real estate gets done”. To catch up on the conversation go brezsnyassociates.com/2021/04/ The clash between the transactional and the relational is an old-story in real estate, reflected in the stereotypes about used-car salesmen that contrast mightily with other accounts about trusted advisors guiding people through the biggest decisions of their lives. Our culture is uncomfortable with being...

Dax Nollenberger

- Dax Nollenberger

Dax’s Data: 2021 Year in Review

January 11, 20222021 was the year of firsts. Not only did the real estate market survive a global pandemic, it thrived. To be fair, it thrived despite unprecedented times not because. Santa Cruz County Real Estate has seen a consistent and steady appreciation since the last housing crash and great recession. To truly put into perspective just how crazy the 2021 Santa Cruz County real estate market really was, I dove into the last 11 years of real estate data. So, what records were broken in 2021?...

Digital Disruption Of Real Estate Versus More Traditional Approaches

January 10, 2022We’re talking about the silent battle that’s raging between the digital disruption of real estate and more traditional approaches to the business rooted in personal service and experience-based representation. To catch up on the conversation go brezsnyassociates.com/2021/04/ While the battle isn’t always visible to the naked eye, it is increasingly getting woven into the fabric of everyday real estate, insidiously tucked into the nooks and crannies of every listing, every offer and every closing. And there’s a growing sense of disconnect permeating the whole process...

What Lies Ahead for Real Estate in 2022

January 7, 2022Nothing surprises me anymore. On New Year’s Eve I was ruminating about the future of real estate when I received a mysterious invite to a midnight Zoom session for forward-thinking Realtors. Since I wasn’t doing much else, I figured why not. At the stroke of twelve the link went live and I was asked to disable my pop-up protection and share my screen. That’s when one of those eerie infinite mirror effects was triggered and a long series of cryptic messages began scrolling through...

Battle for the Soul of Real Estate

January 3, 2022In moments of quiet reflection that occasionally arise between bouts of multiple-offer madness, I often find myself thinking about the battle for the soul of real estate that’s taking place. One very few people are even conscious of or care about. Perhaps, it’s the same battle that’s occurring in so many other aspects of our daily lives. The one reflected in deepening divisions and the steady unraveling of a culture that’s frayed at the edges, struggling to hold its center and seemingly afflicted by a...