Re: a market truth
Posted by A Mason on January 05, 2004 at 13:49:02:
In Reply to: Re: a market truth posted by TheShortSalePro on January 02, 2004 at 16:01:48:
>Something is wrong. A home that is both properly priced, and properly exposed to its market should sell (be under contract) within 30 days. Period.
ShortSalePro: It's not this simple! Unless, that is, you consider selling at $0 to be "properly priced".Or, more realistically, selling at $30 K below what you paid for the house. In the Round Rock market (near Austin) there is a tremendous glut of houses that are going begging. Your attitude seems to be that if these houses are not selling, they are not "properly" priced. That's bunk. In my case, I had excellent exposure (house shown at least 50 times in six months), with a virtual tour on the internet.I finally found a determined but marginal buyer who needed all the help she could get (HUD, I paid 6% closing costs, down payment), and I consider myself very lucky to have broken almost even on my bad investment. I hope she'll be happy and able to enjoy the house and build equity in it, bless her soul!
So selling within 30 days is completely unrealistic in some markets. My advice based on my recent experience:1) If you don't already know a good broker with a proven track record for selling houses and need to start afresh, it's probably better to work with a large, well-known real estate company (in the Austin area, Re/Max, Keller-Williams, possibly Coldwell-Banker or Century 21). Don't attempt to sell without professional help. This HUD stuff and other forms of creative financing can get complicated, and the real estate contract needs to be absolutely sound.2) Avoid like the plague any broker who suggests listing at a price that is too high (do your homework first, so you know what is a reasonable price for your market). Also, think twice before using a broker who offers you a discounted commission; usually, this means insufficient advertising and exposure for your house. In difficult markets, a competent broker earns his commission and does not need to discount his fee.3) Participate in "neighborhood gold" or other programs designed to facilitate home ownership for low and middle-income people. (This doen't apply, of course, if your house is a mansion -- but the top of the market here isn't selling at all anyway.)4) Allow plenty of time for your house to sell and check out the competition. Realtors have statistics regarding the average number of days on the market. If your house hasn't sold by then, be ready to lower the price. Make repairs and price your property based on what others are doing in your neighborhood. Some brokers generously post informative digests of MLS listings on their web sites. This is your best source of information.
- Re: a market truth BUNK? - njdave 14:23:40 01/05/04
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- No such thing as a "market truth" - A Mason 14:52:13 01/05/04
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- No such thing as a "market truth" - A Mason 14:52:13 01/05/04
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