It’s harder to buy, sell homes in metro Atlanta than anywhere in the US – this is the reason why

ATLANTA — It’s harder to buy and sell a house in metro Atlanta than most parts of the U.S.

Channel 2′s Jorge Estevez learned that’s because we have more jobs.

Jobs in the Atlanta metro are growing at a rate of 2.3% compared to the rest of the country at 1.2%.

Also, 35 of the Fortune 500 companies call the metro home. And that makes real estate a hard sell.

“We have seen an explosion of people needing housing,” real estate agent Meg Garrido said.

“So what does that mean for a buyer?” Estevez asked Garrido.

“That means you got a job, you’re coming here, you have a family…” Garrido said.

“Is it harder or easier?” Estevez asked Garrido.

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“It’s a little harder. I’m going to be honest, this scarcity of inventory in the market is real,” Garrido said.

Buyers can also use realtors who know what they’re doing or find the information that will get you the research you need to make smart choices.

Off-market deals are great -- meaning homes that are for sale but have not yet been made public.

“If you’re a seller selling a house and there’s scarcity, it sounds like the ball is in your court?” Estevez asked Garrido.

“Sort of, but you have to remember the three ‘P’s: preparation, pricing, and positioning,” Garrido said.

Preparation: make repairs, complete curb appeal and have great marketing which includes great pictures and descriptions.

Pricing: make sure your home is comparable to others in the area

And positioning …

“We make sure that it’s positioned in a way that it garners all those buyers that are in a frenzy,” Garrido said.

Buying a home is getting tougher. Compared to last year at this time, home prices in Atlanta went up by more than 10% making the median price of a home more than 400- thousand dollars.

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