SOUTH BEND -- After years in the doldrums after the recession, the local housing market is humming, real estate experts say, driven by low supply, mild weather, a rapidly improving economy and fears of rising interest rates.
“It is very active,” Myron Larimer, executive director of the South Bend-Mishawaka Association of Realtors, said of the market.
How active?
Newly listed homes spent an average of 90 days on the market in February, down from 117 the previous year, according to the latest data from Realtor.com.
Total inventory, meanwhile, dipped 24 percent year-over-year, from more than 1,000 units last year to fewer than 800 this year.
“It’s predominantly a sellers’ market,” Larimer said. “We’re seeing multiple offers, competitive bids across most price points, but especially in the $100,000 to $250,000 range, that midrange.”
Some homes, he said, are selling in mere hours.