Some Brokers Say This Is The Worst Real Estate Market In Fifty Years
With the housing bubble bursting, foreclosures rising, and the financial markets in a tailspin - there’s not a whole lot to get excited about if you are selling real estate… either as a profession or as a participant.
Over the last few weeks, I have met with many sellers… and most of them aren’t really serious about selling. How do I know? Let’s call it intuition. That and I’ve been working with the public for more than twenty years.
One tell-tale sign is the reaction to my questions regarding how much time, effort and money they are willing to devote to the effort. The less they want to do… the more I know that they’re not serious.
If You Don’t Need To Sell Right Now - Don’t Bother Trying
With mortgage companies closing their doors left and right - it is getting increasingly difficult for many buyers to get financed right now. And the A+ credit folks that didn’t make that purchase last month are finding out that their interest rates on jumbo loans have gone up.
A couple of weeks ago, I personally dealt with two sets of buyers who - after submitting their offers - decided to withdraw their offers before the sellers had a chance to respond. Talk about cold feet. And this is not unique, as several other brokers I have spoken with are reporting similar incidents.
Around the same time, I received an email from a rather large builder letting me know that they are offering an 8% commission to bring them a buyer. That’s nearly THREE times the going rate. Are they desperate? You be the judge. One thing is for sure - they are serious sellers.
The question is - are YOU serious about selling?
If you’re not in need of selling your property - my advice is to wait. There are many really serious sellers out there that you have to compete with, and if you’re not ready to do what it takes… it will be an exercise in futility.