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Hi, guys! Longtime lurker on these forums...so much so that I realized today that the search feature must be so great that I never actually needed to create an account, haha.
Anyway, to the point, after moving to Nashville from out of state with my 5 months pregnant wife 3+ years, we finally have our finances in order to purchase a home. Of course, as luck would have it (if it wasn't for bad luck...am I right?), apparently, it's basically the worst time ever to be buying a home in this area due to a "lack of inventory" as we've been told.
To up the challenge, we're dealing with a fairly limited budget. Without getting into our life story, we've been approved for $150k and are first-time home buyers. I've read through this forum a tremendous amount, and I've seen the general recommendations along our price point (Donelson, Hermitage, neighborhoods out by the zoo, etc).
But what we've been finding is that obvious homes are obvious, and listings are gone within 24 hours...and often for $5k-$8k ABOVE the asking price. It's like an immediate bidding frenzy with a bunch of rabid dogs. We've missed out on a couple homes already due to either not being fast enough, or being outbid beyond our maximum. And all we're left with is "better nuck lext time".
So, here I am, humbly asking for the expertise of this awesome community. I need somebody who knows the game and isn't afraid of a challenge. Somebody who is a straight shooter and will tell us if we're barking up the wrong tree. If we're losing out because we're doing something wrong, I want to know that so we can adjust our attack.
***Skip here if you don't care about backstory, haha...and if you read all that, thank you.***
What We're Looking For:
3 br, 1.5+ ba
Some type of bonus room (garage, basement, den, etc)
At least 0.18 acre lot...with a usable yard (obviously, fenced in would be a perk...but it's not a dealbreaker)
Not a crime ridden neighborhood (occasional arrest/assault is one thing...but burglaries and robberies right around the corner is not ideal)
Though it often goes hand in hand with crime rates, a good school zone is not critical. My wife is a teacher, so our daughter can attend the zone she teaches in
Within 30 minutes of downtown Nashville
We have no problem with an older home that may need some cosmetic TLC (paint, carpet, fixtures, etc...just no major renovation being downplayed as "TLC")
Like I said, Donelson, Hermitage, and the 37211 zoo area are obvious choices...but we'd be open to Old Hickory, parts of Madison (along Graycroft Ave seems decent), southern Goodlettsville, maybe even Antioch. Really, we're not close-minded to anything that is a good suggestion. You guys know more than we do.
If you're still with me, again, thank you. I'm sure I overshared. I always do. But seldom is a problem solved with a lack of information. All advice and suggestions are greatly appreciated!
I will preface by saying that I cannot recommend an agent, since that part of town is not my area.
However ...
What I think you need above all is an agent who has lived here a long time and who knows a lot of people, because you will increase your chances of getting a home greatly if your agent hears about a house BEFORE the seller lists it.
In a certain price range, the Brentwood market is the exact same way. I get probably a letter every month from an agent who has a buyer who would "love to buy in our neighborhood." We've been in your position before. You have to be absolutely ready to pounce, can't have any contingencies and have cash if possible. Know your target areas like the back of your hand so that you can recognize a good deal when you see it and are able to make an offer immediately if it works for you.
But anyway, if you can get recommendations for a well-connected realtor who lives in your target area and/or knows people who are thinking of selling, that is your best bet.
Thanks for the response, Wmns4Life. I agree. Finding somebody who has what amounts to "insider info" would be great. I guess my only concern is since we're trying to be flexible in looking in different areas around Nashville, is it reasonable for one agent to know all of them that well? Or would it make sense to have a person in each area?
One other thing I wonder is if even being lightning fast and offering full asking price might not be enough. I know if I were the seller, and I got a full price offer in less than 24 hours, it would make me think I could do better...unless maybe I was already moved out and desperate to sell.
By that same token, the last house we looked at, the showings were overlapping and it received three offers (other than ours) on the first day. So, in a case like that, highest dollar wins. It's just brutal right now.
But yeah, thanks for the tips! I know this stuff can be hard to predict, but does anybody know if inventory generally increases during the summer? All I keep hearing is how "Nashville is growing exponentially" and "there are more buyers than sellers". It feels very much doom and gloom for a family that is finally ready to stop paying obscenely inflating rents.
I unfortunately bought in this market and had to go way above what I was wanting to pay to get a new house. I wanted to be in the 1800sq ft range at about 185k-190k. But it seemed no one was building that type of home. Had to stretch to a 2 story, 2161 sq ft at 229k, and that was getting about 9,000 off for paying without a mortgage.
I have a friend who was bidding on a house recently here in the Murfreesboro area that was near your price range and when they completed their offer, there were 12 total offers and the winning one was 20k over asking price. My realtor is pulling her hair out trying to find her clients anything to look at in this price range. No matter what, you have to remain level headed as this is the biggest investment of your life. Can't jump on the first "clunker". I know none of this is what you want to hear, but man it's tough out there. You have to remain focused and patient.
Thanks for the response, Wmns4Life. I agree. Finding somebody who has what amounts to "insider info" would be great. I guess my only concern is since we're trying to be flexible in looking in different areas around Nashville, is it reasonable for one agent to know all of them that well? Or would it make sense to have a person in each area?
I would focus on finding one quality agent. They don't have to be "experts" in each neighborhood, just experienced and well connected. Also work your personal network. Ask friends and co-workers if they know anyone, etc.
Sellers usually know when they are in a hot market, so worry about pricing too low is not usually a concern. Sometimes if they are priced a tiny bit lower than average it often means they are inviting multiple bids.
There are multiple ways to approach it, but patience will be key for you. I agree with JJAF that you don't want to jump on a clunker because you panic or get tired of looking. Keep your dealbreakers in mind, and just do the best you can.
I forgot to mention that the Terms of Service here require that any Realtor recommendations be made via direct message.
They aren't allowed to post directly on the site.
Thank you! And it's also a huge no-no for realtors to solicit business either through posting in the forum or through Direct Messages. A sure-fire way to get permanently banned is for a realtor to solicit business from forum posters.
I do wish the OP good luck. While it's exciting to see how popular Nashville has become, we're seeing one of the downsides of Nashville's red hot housing market with the problems n8rockerasu and JJAF have experienced and are experiencing. Hang in there!
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its - possession
it's - contraction of it is
your - possession
you're - contraction of you are
their - possession
they're - contraction of they are
there - referring to a place
loose - opposite of tight
lose - opposite of win
who's - contraction of who is
whose - possession
alot - NOT A WORD
Yeah, you guys make good points. I mainly want to focus on the things I DO have control over that can be improved. As for seller's underpricing to invite multiple bids, I honestly question if that's the new "strategy" in real estate.
I like to think of myself as a very logical person. So, if I'm a realtor seeing homes consistently go for $10K+ more that are receiving multiple bids on day one, why would I not advise my clients to price their home higher? Creating a scenario where multiple buyers get "attached" and maybe overextend themselves so not to lose out on a home they really like seems like a much more foolproof strategy than starting high and having to haggle down. Is this just the new normal?
So, ultimately, looking at any home that is going to draw in multiple buyers (ie. anything decent) is going to be a fruitless effort unless you can outspend them. I've been wracking my brain, and I don't see any other way around that. The options seem to be overspend, look at something a little less obvious (everybody and their mother wants a move-in-ready, pristine home), go further away from Nashville (really not an option for us without just entirely shaking up our world), or hope that inventory changes (do things generally get better as summer approaches..or is this market too nuts to count on that?)
Yeah, you guys make good points. I mainly want to focus on the things I DO have control over that can be improved. As for seller's underpricing to invite multiple bids, I honestly question if that's the new "strategy" in real estate.
I like to think of myself as a very logical person. So, if I'm a realtor seeing homes consistently go for $10K+ more that are receiving multiple bids on day one, why would I not advise my clients to price their home higher? Creating a scenario where multiple buyers get "attached" and maybe overextend themselves so not to lose out on a home they really like seems like a much more foolproof strategy than starting high and having to haggle down. Is this just the new normal?
So, ultimately, looking at any home that is going to draw in multiple buyers (ie. anything decent) is going to be a fruitless effort unless you can outspend them. I've been wracking my brain, and I don't see any other way around that. The options seem to be overspend, look at something a little less obvious (everybody and their mother wants a move-in-ready, pristine home), go further away from Nashville (really not an option for us without just entirely shaking up our world), or hope that inventory changes (do things generally get better as summer approaches..or is this market too nuts to count on that?)
I would not expect a huge inventory jump in the summer. Typically this is the peak time, starting in March after Spring Break and running through early summer. But of course you just never know.
Sure, everybody wants a remodeled, move-in ready home in a safe neighborhood where they can walk to coffee shops and cafes for $100K. That's just not the reality here.
So your instinct is correct: Narrow down and learn your target neighborhoods and pursue them relentlessly. Know your dealbreakers, but be willing to accept "dated" surfaces, low curb appeal etc. Things you can change.
As for pricing strategy, overpricing can REALLY backfire. We once listed our house in a prime neighborhood at a time where there were NO comps. In our excitement, and at the overzealous advice of our agent, we overestimated its appeal and priced it too high. We had tons of showings but NO offers (that's when you know you are dead meat).
Meanwhile, other similar homes finally did come on the market. They were priced about $30K less than ours and ended up getting bid up to where we should have listed in the first place.
So yes, a seller who knows they are in a hot market don't have to start high. If buyers think another house might come on the market for less, they will wait. And then next thing you know, you're on the market a month already and it's like your listing is tainted. Those in a sellers market could end up in a bidding war and get more than asking anyway.
See, that's an interesting point too, and I've even brainstormed (really trying to think outside the box and get creative, haha) to pursue homes that appear to be overpriced, and just make our best offer on them hoping that they'll be a little more antsy than the sellers getting multiple offers on day one. It's kind of freaky that anything on the market for more than a week has this "Ew...what's wrong with it?" vibe.
Maybe I'm just being a naive first-time buyer and there is something actually wrong with those homes. The other thing I was told is that those homes "probably" have lower offers on them already, and the sellers are unwilling to budge, so they're not worth pursuing anyway.
Just trying to come up with something that amounts to more than "wish in one hand..." and you know what in the other, haha.
Again, I appreciate the dialogue though. The process is maddening, and at least this forum is cheaper than therapy.
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