MLS report: LI home sale prices on the climb

[LongIslandCitizen]

Originally Posted by hotkarl

At first totally.
I eventually became a pro with MLS. I know exactly what the place is gonna look like "in person" now. Especially if you are familiar with an area and you use the map feature, sometimes you can totally rule it out immediately.
Even if you're not familiar, you use the map hybrid feature and you can see if the house is near a highway, shopping mall, industrial park, crack house, etc...
MLS is an awesome tool once you get the hang of it, you almost don't need an agent until the very end because you widdle your choices down to a handful of "must see" homes.

exactly. Once you learn to "prospect" it you will be fine.

[Chrisk327]

Originally Posted by ocabrera7

I agree. I think come may, june people are going to try to continue to buy but they will find lending much more constrained as government intervention dries up and tax friendly policy (home buyers credit) expires. As for myself I have been sprucing up my house and it is going on sale this week (I am in boston MA). I think the house is being priced at the upper range of 'right' but nothing outrageous. I am looking for 97% of asking and will use any creative incentive to get there including cash back to buyer towards closing costs or any tool I can use. Regardless I realize that i am at the mercy of the buyer here so pricing it right was paramount for me.
Regardling LI real estate (which I am eyeing) it is pretty awful. I have been looking at properties since say october 2009 and only about 3-5 properties have really 'impressed' me. None of thoese have flown off the market either and some are still there. Looking at stuff up to 650k but I hope to only spend up to 525k for a home. Homes at the 400-550k are generally of dated condition or as indicated they abut a major road, school, or commercial zone.....not a good indication of quality. These higher quality home owners (they are out there!) are doing themselves a disservice by waiting to come to market cos once they decide it is the right time.....rates will be up, stimulus will be expired and loan underwritting will be miniscule. Top that with the fact that the government is considering asset sales from their balance sheet including tens of billions of mtgs (that they previously purchased in the open mkt) and we are setting ourselves up for a double dip in housing as recovery in values gets bullrushed by reality.

I disagree that they are waiting, I think for the most part they don't make it to market. My theory on LI RE is that most of the houses that trade are outdated crap. If someone buys, builds or inherits a nice house, what happens? they hold onto it for 30 years.

My parents have a nice big 4 br dutch colonial. I've had people in the area mention to me that they would love to own that house, why can't they? my parents have owned it for 35 years, and before that my grandparents owned it for the 30 before that. that is extreme, but people with nice houses, come and stay.

[Burb]

Originally Posted by logan2k

Home sales may be up, prices may be up, but the bottom line is none of this is indicative of what the true market will bear after all the artificial incentives go away.

Lets see what happens when the tax credit goes away and mortgage rates go back to normalized levels. Only then will we see how healthy the housing market truly is.

I almost agree with this statement. Where I jump off is believing the government will not discontinue its strategy to subsidize and prop up the market anytime soon. In 5 years housing prices will be close to what they are today, Uncle Sam will see to that, but inflation will continue to eat away at the US dollar. The net result, spending 400K for a modest home on LI will no longer be out of line with the cost of everything else.

[WJFM]

While the low interest rates and govt subsidies are trying to prop up the market, there is a stronger force of unemployment and weak economy pulling down the market. If the job market improves, especially in the financial sector that is the life blood of NYC ( and hence dictates the home prices in Nassau county), that could easily balance out the higher interest rates.

[rocafeller05]

Well, unless pay raises to not go up in those 5 years.

Originally Posted by Burb

I almost agree with this statement. Where I jump off is believing the government will not discontinue its strategy to subsidize and prop up the market anytime soon. In 5 years housing prices will be close to what they are today, Uncle Sam will see to that, but inflation will continue to eat away at the US dollar. The net result, spending 400K for a modest home on LI will no longer be out of line with the cost of everything else.