Our market has changed. The first 6 months of 2014 we had multiple offers and prices increased. The second half of the year, from July on, homes stayed on the market longer, multiple offers were infrequent and prices stayed consistent. What a difference now. If you are a buyer and have been waiting to get into the market, you will find you have some very stiff competition. We are seeing all cash offers in the over $800,000 range, financed buyers offering $80K over asking and willing to bring in more cash to make up the difference if the home does not appraise. This past weekend, at one of our open houses, I ran out of our 70 fliers within the first hour! Another agent told me she went through 250 fliers over the weekend!
I have been in real estate long enough to remember the days when I would sit at an open house hoping I wasn’t wasting my time and people would show up. Now people are waiting in their cars when I get to the house waiting for me to open the door.
If you have been thinking about selling, now is a very good time. Don’t wait any longer. Call us now.
If you are a buyer, be willing to offer more than asking price, be creative with terms by being willing to pay sellers costs, give a free rent back (allowing the seller to stay in the home after close for a specified period of time), be willing to pay the difference of the appraisal and letting the seller know upfront to make your offer stand out. Sound crazy? If you want a house in this market you need to be willing to do crazy. Now, that does not mean offering more than you can afford. Look at houses below your budget so that you are not stretching yourself uncomfortably when you do need to offer more than asking.