The Buyers du Jour

It’s been a while since my last post. A lot of buyers came out of the woodwork these last few weeks to actually see property, and I’ve been busy touring them around. These are serious, well-qualified buyers, but many are worried about what the market is going to do.

They want to make low offers as they see median prices trending down. They ask for closing cost credits, interest rate buy-downs, appliances and generous repair allowances. Concerned about spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of borrowed money in a still changing environment, who can blame them?

But the buyers are out there, testing the waters. Yes, they may ask for a lot, and they may seem difficult, however, they are the ones who bring the money to the table. And they are skittish, so I’d say the chance of a deal falling apart is higher than normal right now. If you’re a seller, and you get an offer, be thankful, put your emotions aside, and do whatever you can to make the deal work. Unless you want to sit on the property for a few more months.

The local market continues to change. Builders in the bread-and-butter price ranges seem to be working through their inventory with numbers looking a little better than expected. The resale market still has loads of inventory to work through, but at least the buyers are coming out to play. It’s a good sign.

But I do see more bank owned properties on the MLS these days…