Record lows in housing inventory plummeted even further as the global pandemic spread across Cape Cod over the last two months.
In April, 326 homes sold, compared to last year when 431 sold in that same month, according to preliminary data from the Cape Cod & Islands Association of Realtors.
But real estate agents in the region hope for an upward trend moving forward.
"We're still seeing significant properties going under agreement," said Emily Clark, president of Robert Paul Properties, who remains upbeat. "And houses going onto the market go under agreement quickly."
While less housing stock may give sellers an edge over buyers in the coming months, interest rates, currently in the low 3% range, are expected to remain that way, making it worthwhile for prospective buyers to close the deal.
"Rates are low and the money is out there," Clark said.
Jac Augat, a Realtor with Kinlin Grover, said one reason for lower sales numbers over the last couple months has been the inability of buyers to come to the Cape for a house search in the middle of a pandemic, particularly when there have been no accommodations available for overnight stays.
The pandemic has had one positive outcome for Cape Cod real estate, Augat said. With fewer cases of coronavirus than seen in other regions, "people see the Cape as a safe haven," he said. And that can be a motivator.
Augat demonstrated his point with a $1.1 million home in Truro that was put under contract recently. The buyer was from New York City proper, and the deal was closed — shortly after the property was listed — without the buyer ever crossing the bridge or stepping foot on the Truro property.
Since a trip to the Cape from a city that has remained an epicenter for the coronavirus, would be too challenging, the buyer took a tour of the house via a three-dimensional walk-through program, which allows the viewer to move through rooms, to stop and see it from all angles, and to move up and down stairs.
Such virtual walk-throughs give a far better sense of a property's condition than simple photographs, and have proven to be particularly good tools for a time when access is limited.
It helped to cinch the deal on the Truro house.
"We're closing in three weeks — cash sale," Augat said.
Augat also had a $370,000 home go under agreement last week. "The buyer, from White Plains, N.Y., did a virtual tour of the house on Friday and put it under contract on Sunday," he said.
The push is now on bolstering housing inventory by reaching out to sellers who have been hesitant to list their properties during the last few months. "We're telling them, it's a seller's market." Augat said.
Ryan Castle, chief executive officer of the Cape Cod & Islands Association of Realtors, said it is hard to predict what will happen this summer.
"It kind of depends on how the market reacts to what's happened," Castle said. "Is there a pent-up demand among buyers and do sellers decide to put their houses on the market when they haven't for the last two months?"
One positive point is that house sales may have gone down, based on the April statistics, but house prices continue to go up, Castle said.
With unemployment widespread, however, it may be harder for buyers to take advantage of low-interest rates and nail down a mortgage.
Castle said the qualifications for mortgage applicants have become tougher because lenders want to be sure there is the ability to pay the money back.
Banks like Cape Cod 5 have lowered or deferred payments on some existing mortgages for a few months due to current economic conditions.
But for new mortgages, "We have to underwrite based on income and the ability to pay a loan," said Roert Talerman, co-president of the Cape Cod 5. "For people currently not employed, qualifying for a mortgage is a challenge, but we are still very much in the business of making loans to borrowers who have incomes."
