Hi, I hope everybody had a fabulous Christmas and New Year holiday. Oh boy is it obvious it’s a new year with a new president! So many predictions flying around like our last article spoke of. The gym classes are packed full of new folks, lots of people trying to eat right, bunch of people talking business…..and especially the business of real estate .

With a new president that is pro-real estate and business and the Fed pushing up the interest rate, it’s creating an even stronger sellers market than last year. And last year was a good year!

Although some say it’ll take Trump about a year to become accustomed to the political side of his job, folks previously on the fence about buying and selling are making moves in that direction. The combination of talk of interest rates rising and Trump’s proposed immigration policies (that may drive up construction cost due to a lack of cheap illegal immigrants) positions NOW is a really good time to buy as the months and years that follow will likely bring higher housing costs.

Other predictions that resonate with me in my world is the talk of MLS mergers (multiple listing service ….AKA-the keeper of the data) and possible agent commission structure changes.  Due to the availability and vast possibilities of technology, I believe this year will be the beginning of really big changes in how Realtors do business. If you don’t stay up, you will definitely get left behind in the years that follow especially if you have a hard time accepting and maximizing change. We’ve included an article in the links section of this newsletter that sums up what’s happening in these areas. It won’t be business as usual for long.

I spent my holidays with family. We are so fortunate to live relatively close so it was packed full of family fun. We had the traditional pictures with Santa, making kids breakfast on Christmas morning,  watched them open presents, drove through an amazing Christmas light display at the Spirit of the Suwannee music park, jet ski ride with the manatees on Christmas morning, and a New Year’s Eve celebration with life size Jenga and sky lanterns. I included videos in the link below that are sooooo much funnier in the high speed I set them to! We even had a trip to Disney packed between the weekends. I’m so thankful and grateful to be able to spend quality time with my family. I hope you were also able to spend time with loved ones. When all else is said and done that’s really what matters most in life: Being there for those you love.  Happy New Year!!

Click here to see more videos of Tanya’s holidays.