[Hero]

Originally Posted by Hero

I keep hearing people talk about "peak 2005 prices." From the charts on zillow, it looks to me that the peak price was actually around 2006-2007 at around 250K. "Peak 2005" would be about 200k. Houses that I see selling are around 2004/2005 price at 150-200k.

Am I missing something here? Like the zestimates, are the charts unreliable too? Should I use something else? Thanks

I think I found the answer to my question:
Mod deleted

[MrTudo]

I worked for a company in Dallas and one of the principals had a business in real estate investment. They made sight unseen offers on houses in certain areas. They were LOW offers. I don't know what the ratio of "insulted" sellers there were, ( who cares? ) . What I do know is they amassed more than 100 single family homes bought right.

[MrTudo]

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

Now foreclosed or bank owned property is a whole different animal. They are generally willing to negotiate quite a bit. We've seen some pretty good deals lately come from the foreclosures.

My bet is there's going to be a lot more of those in the near term and that will probably continue......until people surrender to 40 and 50 year mortgages.

Along with the wiping out of the middle class, property rights and property ownership are also being wiped out for large percentages of people in the US.

Hey, I could be way off. If ya think so, just disregard

[silversurfer]

Thanks for a wealth of information. Selling short was a new one to me, so it was nice to have it explained, in details, and so well, and the other info and links too...
Can we really outguess the market? What makes everyone think it will keep going for at least another year or more? Besides the economy tanking, the destruction of the middle class, energy costs, job loss, low wages (especially in FL)... all that.. but won't the gov't have to step in at some point with a major bailout (for banks not people, naturally) to keep the entire ship of state from sinking?
We're looking to move, but my husband says wait it will go down. I think making a reasonable offer for a long term hold is just as smart. Any opinions? For example: We're looking at a 297k home in Brevard Co. bought in 03 for 183k, and I think is reasonably worth (after much thought, research and consideration) around 220-230k. Does that sound over the top to the professionals out there? It is a very nice 3/2 older home on one acre in a very nice older established neighborhood of similar homes.

[rusty78]

Muggy.....you can offer what you want....but most sellers have a dollar amount that they are not willing to go below....on this site....you can find the city/town/area you are interested in....and scroll down to find the section that offers...what recent prices homes sold for in that area....this will give you an idea of what sellers have been accepting recently.....since prices are still going down....what you offer could be tooooo low....or perhaps to high....on the other side...if you are using a real estate agent... have them do a market analysis on what similar homes have sold for in that area... either way, the more information you have on what homes are selling for....the better you odds of finding something....see if you can find a buyer's agent...this way they work exclusively for you and not the seller....it is worth the extra money....and since you get it all back at closing...it really does not cost you anything......good luck

[cfIfan]

Well silversurfer the to be honest it depends on the location size, ameneites etc but as was mentioned an agent can do a CMA for you to give you a good idea of the current value, although im not sure what they meant by find a buyers agent, it may cost you more in the long run but you get it back at closing, because engageing an agent as a buyer costs you nothing anyway and most agents i know including me will do CMA's for our clients for free anyway.

As for your comments on the markets decline. This is one reason why i think the market will stabilize then begin a slow recovery to modest levels in 6-12 months time. Firstly Real Estate plays a major role in the economy and the govt wont let it spin out of all total control, but there are other factors i have mentioned. We have entered an election year, which historically has been good for the real estate market even in years of recession.

[rusty78]

Most buyer's agents that I have delt with...request a fee up front...I can only guess to assure the buyer's loyality to them....hence...if the buyer decides not to purchase and or moves off to a different area...the buyer looses the fee they have given the buyer's agent....of course if you buy a home with the buyer's agent....all the real estate fees are covered by the seller.....the advantage to a buyer's agent....is that they work for you the buyer.....not the seller....and as such....they are obligated to tell you everything they know about the seller, the home, problems, etc......it's similar to hiring a lawyer.....he works for you.....wouldn't it be nice to know the seller accepted a low offer on the house you are interested.....or the reason the last deal fell through...or that the owner has to sell for whatever reason....etc......your move

[MyHomeIsInOcala]

Oh, Muggy, I was going to mention that to give you an idea of what some of the REO homes are listed for, you can go to HomeSteps.com and search the FreddieMac REO lists.

Again, Good luck

[FlaLadyB]

At the moment my partner and I are dealing with a short sale. It's a better route than forclosure for the sellers. The offer (or offers) go in at an amount and you sit and wait for several months (usually 3-4) to see if the bank will accept it - or not.

Yes.. they have gone through and been accepted. It's not fun, it's not easy, it's time consuming and anything but instant, but it does happen. You want to look for house that ARE short sales, not just homes for sale.

Sometimes we know what's happening with the seller, sometimes the sellers don't tell us they are in trouble. They should since it would make things a lot easier for both sides to face the facts up front and be able to deal with it appropriately.

[cfIfan]

In terms of the post that was left regarding buyers agents, i am a buyers agent and i dont charge an upfront fee. You will find the good agents dont charge. What i do instead is have my buyers sign an agreement that i am their realtor, because i could do all the work and then they go and have another realtor do the transaction and i am out of the deal. That way, by having an agreement in place i dont take any money upfront. Typically the agreements state that if the buyer uses another agent in a transaction then the commission that would have been paid is the penalty fee. That way buyers are likely to not mess their agants around, but also it means i dont have to take any upfront money from buyers.