'10/'11 Asking Price v. Sale Price (Dallas, Plano: sales, foreclosures, mortgages)

[preppyglam]

So, I learned in my reading that TX does not publicly disclose sale prices of homes. You can only find that through a realtor/comps. This is making researching areas and home affordability of a given area a little tricky.

Does anyone have any idea about how much a house sells for v. the asking/list price? If its listed at $339k, will it sell for $339k? Or $320k, or $300k? Im not sure how the current market is in TX...what with the economy (which, as I understand it, you guys aren't being hit as hard), foreclosures and demand, etc. Also, if you buy a brand new house, do people really pay what the builder is asking? Or do they end up paying less? My cousin bought a house in Colorado from a builder and they paid about 30K less than the builders price online and in the brochures. Not sure if its the same situation in TX.

I think I read in one of the many (many) posts I've been glazing over lately, that someone paid about 50k less for the asking price, but the post was not current. A few years old, if I remember right.

Also, I have to insert a price bracket in the complimentary MLS searches I am doing online...but I would like to know if I can go one bracket higher in the search and search up to $350k if I want to spend $325, or if I should just stay in my bracket. This little factor would open up way more options in certain areas.

Any realtors or recent home buyers care to chime in?

As always, thanks all!

[GreyDay]

Originally Posted by preppyglam

So, I learned in my reading that TX does not publicly disclose sale prices of homes. You can only find that through a realtor/comps. This is making researching areas and home affordability of a given area a little tricky.

Does anyone have any idea about how much a house sells for v. the asking/list price? If its listed at $339k, will it sell for $339k? Or $320k, or $300k? Im not sure how the current market is in TX...what with the economy (which, as I understand it, you guys aren't being hit as hard), foreclosures and demand, etc. Also, if you buy a brand new house, do people really pay what the builder is asking? Or do they end up paying less? My cousin bought a house in Colorado from a builder and they paid about 30K less than the builders price online and in the brochures. Not sure if its the same situation in TX.

I think I read in one of the many (many) posts I've been glazing over lately, that someone paid about 50k less for the asking price, but the post was not current. A few years old, if I remember right.

Also, I have to insert a price bracket in the complimentary MLS searches I am doing online...but I would like to know if I can go one bracket higher in the search and search up to $350k if I want to spend $325, or if I should just stay in my bracket. This little factor would open up way more options in certain areas.

Any realtors or recent home buyers care to chime in?

As always, thanks all!

It depends on the price point. Homes >2 million are routinely dropping 2-3-400k off the asking price. At the million dollar range there's about a 5-10% haircut between asking and selling.

Now below 500k is where things get interesting. First check and see if the house has ever sold (your realtor can help) that'll give you what they paid for it. You can also check the address on DCAD and see what the tax rolls are (still this number may not be completely accurate).

Routinely however folks add about 5% to the price or about 25k to give themselves negotiating room. You realtor can help with recent comps and you will need one.

So now you've got the house say at 350 listed. Offer 325k and see if they bite. They may be offended, they may counter, but you're trying to get the best deal. Often a realtor will know if the family has moved already, is still in the area, how long it's been on the market - these affect willingness to take a lower offer, esp. if they're paying two mortgages and taxes.

You might get lucky. Look at the 375-400k, it's a whole different ballgame these days and some folks need to get rid of inventory.

[PlanoGirl]

If you don't want to go over 325K, I think, intodays market, you could look at houses up to 350K, but personally I would try to not look over 340K. At that price, I can see people dropping 10-15K to get a quicker sell, but 25K is pushing it. If they easy drop that far, then they were overpriced to begin with...or have a situation (i.e. two mortagages, etc) that gives them no other choice. Just be prepared that you may fall in love with a house at 350K where the seller WON'T drop, or has ALREADY dropped from a higher price...and have a plan in mind of what you would do in that situation. If there is absolutely NO WAY you would buy it at that price, then you probably shouldn't even go to see houses priced at that level...unless they have been on the market a long time and have not already have one or two reductions.

[PlanoGirl]

Also to add...

It depends on the area, and the comparables. In high demand areas you will see much less drop from the asking price than in areas where inventory is high.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by PlanoGirl

Also to add...

It depends on the area, and the comparables. In high demand areas you will see much less drop from the asking price than in areas where inventory is high.

This is the best advice you've gotten so far. It is a neighborhood by neighborhood case, and you will need to get hooked up with a realtor who is an expert in the areas you are interested in to get the best inside info on the neighborhood.

For $325k budget, you could probably look up to $350k in many areas and $375-400k in the slower/worse local markets. Or a well priced $325k could sell for asking or a bit above- all depends on the neighborhood, home, and seller's situation.

[nsumner]

There is no magic formula as to list price vs sale price it. It is very neighborhood specific. A home could be well overpriced and another one just little less yet, still overpriced and you may think it's a bargain. At the end of the day, the home still has to appraise for whatever amount you end up buying it for, not just the loan amount.

Having a Realtor that knows the market is key. As you said, sales prices aren't disclosed and as Ganongrey explained tax assessed values don't reflect the market value.

Your Realtor will do a market analysis on the neighborhood, can see what the current owners owe on the house and depending on when they purchased it, see what paid for it, how long it's been on the market etc. These are just some of the factors to take into consideration when deciding how much to offer on a home.

If you consider a foreclosure or a corporate relocation, there are no emotions involved from the sellers perspective, they just look at the bottom line, so you can offer a lot lower than list price. If you do the same with a homeowner, they may get offended and not even want to sell the house to you at all.

With builders, other factors to take into consideration is what stage is the home in, how many homes does the builder have in inventory, how long before they will be finished in the neighborhood and who is their competition You would of course get the best deal if the home is already completed.

Naima

[loves2read]

if you are looking for investment houses vs one to live in I think you are going to find there is not much give in houses in areas where there is good demand and people have priced homes for the market--
however--that being said--some people have priced their homes above the real market "value" because they have money in the house they won't walk away from and they have no real need to sell or they can just wait...

what I have seen happening for almost two years now -- in the areas I have been keeping track of--
is that when a home goes on the market for the first time--there is usually a good deal of interest and viewings--AND if the house is in good shape/has been brought up to date reasonably plus the price point is valid it is likely to move quickly--within 30 days--within two weeks sometimes...
because there ARE buyers on the market who know what they want and they are either paying cash or have financing in place--they are not dithering around...
they have been biding their time until the right house comes on the market in their desired area and they pounce on it...
Some areas have not been troubled with foreclosures or had high numbers of listed homes--not lot of turnover--and in reality those are often the more desireable areas--people like where they live and they are staying put...

IF a house has come on the market in less desireable area and it is overpriced and/or has not seen some updating--then it can sit there until the owners do two things--they lower the price enough to make it pallitable to the buyers--they make some renovations to give it more updated look--or they do some of both...
it is rare that a house with no price drops/updating will sit on the market for say 6 mo and then get a buyer...
and the longer a home IS on the market psychologically, the less desireable shoppers view it--sort of like milk with an old "sell-by" date sitting on the shelf--people look for the ones showing they have been added more recently...

There are some homes I have read about that have actually been in bidding wars and had multiple offers--even AFTER the market downturn and excess inventory hit the market...
but as everyone has said--much depends on the area--some areas/price ranges there are not lot of people shopping in--and some are fairly busy...

[preppyglam]

Thank you all so much for the info. All very good to learn/keep in mind.

So far, we are most interested in Rockwall. From what I have read, this area is desirable, but others feel its overpriced and/or "far away"/bad commute times into Dallas.

I am also seeing some builder inventory online from homebuilder sites.

Anyone have any clue about how its going in this area?

[nsumner]

Rockwall/Heath is an awesome place to live in. It is very self sufficient in terms of shopping, dining, healthcare services. The lake is beautiful. In traffic, the commute to downtown Dallas is about 40-45 minutes. The schools are fantastic too.

It's an area that is considered upper middle class to rich. The lake living is a real treat. We love it.

There are a couple of communities with new construction with reputable builders, selling very well.

Naima

[preppyglam]

That commute is doable for us. DH's office is in Garland anyhow, a bit closer than Dallas. We are coming from Southern CA and a 45 min commute, in traffic, is something on the wish list. =) The lake living is very appealing to me. I have a feeling Im going to miss the ocean more than I care to think about! I know its not the ocean, but its a nice alternative. =)

If you wouldn't mind sending me a message about the communities with reputable builders, I would be appreciative. Are they selling well due to demand, or reasonable prices for the area (or both?). I will PM you, and when you have an extra minute would love to hear back. Thank you!