A good tip for you house sellers...

[amax41]

Originally Posted by nickindependence

Amax, i feel it is a shame you have a distrust and hatred for all realtors. This is quite clear from what you have said in all your posts pertaining to this thread but you shouldnt label all realtors with the same label.

isn't hatred .... I find realtors back north are pretty reasonable...down here - snakes - used car salesmen... sorry that's how we see it.

I completely agree that you should go in on an offer with what you feel a property is worth. But bare in mind in your previous example, just because somebody paid $175,000 4 yrs ago doesnt mean they havent remortgaged and owe $250,000 or more. You dont know what somebody owes on a property to be able to sell it at that price.

actually incorrect, that would show up. I know where to look to get the info I need. Additionally it isn't all that hard to pull a minor title search in order to validate the information found.

Secondly, we want properties to sell because having them sat on the market does not get me paid and guess what, i want to get paid. I dont do this job because i am such a nice chap that i want to help everyone i meet for free even you you waste my time. I have a wife, a mortgage and a daughter just like every other Joe out there. I guess you go to work for the fun of it every day right.

I can't comment here - you chose your professional not I




I agree with you that you should put in an offer of what a property is worth, after all thats negotiating, but you would actually be taken seriously if you had viewed the property and put it in writing, otherwise you are just a window shopper. You wouldnt buy a car you see in a lot without taking it for a test drive.


This actually does depend on the market area. I have done it both ways

All i can say is i think perhaps there must be a communication break down between us somewhere along the line because in my mind you are flogging a dead horse. Consider this for a moment. We are in a buyers market. The market is flooded with properties and everyone who is in it to buy at the moment is getting some great deals. And if you dont secure 1 house there are 1000s or to choose from. Yet the Poster of this thread from what he says is having so much trouble in buying a property. It doesnt take a brain surgeon to work out it is because of the technique he is using. That is not just a realtor talking but someone with common sense.

yes there are 1000's (overpriced) houses to choose from, and it is a buyer's market. Premium? Not even close yet. This area still has some room to drop in price. I'll bow out of this thread at this point since it's simply not worth my time responding anymore to you. While you do have some points...you do represent the type of realtor I will never do any business with in Florida. Please don't take it personally there are very very very very few that actually anything close to what I would deal with. Perhaps if all "larger merchandise" sales people in Central Florida come off like slimey used car salesmen that would sell their grandmother in a heartbeat for a buck ...while lying and spinning everything

[Rich_CD]

Originally Posted by nickindependence

Yet the Poster of this thread from what he says is having so much trouble in buying a property.

Not, completely correct. I can buy a property tomorrow, no problem.

I was just having trouble understanding why I do business in other markets quickly and smoothly, but in real estate the process used is quite odd. Also, since I have watched the price of listed properties drop below what I would have paid, then watched them go into foreclosure, I wondered why someone hasn't started following a different sales approach (something quicker, easier, and more friendly). I could have saved one of those chaps from going into foreclosure.

[nickindependence]

It seems that Amex or whoever they are is unreasonable and i take great offense at being judged by someone who has never met me and doesnt know how i operate.

FYI, when i said refi previously that is just one method, who is to say that someone isnt up to their neck in debt in personal loans etc which wouldnt reflect on their property and they want to sell to clear all of this other debt aswell. YOU DONT KNOW. And it does annoy me when people out there insist on being a know it all when they have clearly no idea what they are talking about. Guess what, by putting an offer in writing does show your serious but price is only one of many conditions. Someone may agree on price but cant close in a week for example.

Yes there are some shady Realtors out there just as there are shady people in every profession, however it strikes me just because you have had a bad experience in the past then you should do your homework on who you engage as a realtor, its not as if there arnt plenty of us out there. If you chose to go with a cowboy because he was the first person you came across then big a fool you.

It seems to me you have a problm with the system more than anything, if you dont like it and you want to sell then be a FSBO, or if your buying dont use a realtor. As a fsbo you dont have access to the huge marketing effort we do each year and which i provide for my customers internationally which they benefit hugely from. And if you choose not to use a realtor to buy then you dont have the protection which using one gives you.

Damning remarks about all realtors to be quite honest is ignorant and it works 2 ways. To be honest if you came to me and asked me to sell your house there is no way i would do it, because if your like that to people you havent met and dont know from adam, why would i bring my customers who i work hard to get and come to me through word of mouth to you.

I suggest if you dont like the situation, dont get into to it and then moan continuously afterwards because its people with your attitude who give decent realtors who work hard for their customers a bad name

[nickindependence]

Im not sure what you mean when you say you do this in other markets. For most people, buying or selling a home or property is one of the biggest things they will do in their entire life. As such, people as a whole dont respond well to people calling them up out of the blue and being told that someone wants to pay x amount for their house. That is one reason most poeple use Realtors because it puts an intermediary between the 2 parties. Also as has been mentioned sooooo many times...lol a verbal offer is worth nothing. You may be the sincerest person in the world when you make that offer, but you have no ties to these people and can back out at any time.

I dont think you quite grasp that buying or selling real estate is not like going to Publix and buying your weekly shop. Even for people buying for investment purposes. It has to be done in a proper manner and although this may seem like it for you and i am sure you are convinced it is, for everyone else it isnt.

You say you can go out and buy a property tomorrow, but i was under the impression you wernt able to get them to sell to you and that was what you were complaining about as you then went on to say if they hadnt been greedy they wouldnt be foreclosing. You need to understand, that there are some stubborn people out there who wont sell for a dime under their asking price. Right or wrong its a fact of life. But if you are making serious offers then you will be taken seriously. Perhaps you are offerning a prettly close ball park figure which they would accept but because you wont put it in writing it puts them off. Or you could be trying to get something for nothing. I dont know but greed works both ways and if thats the case most people feel they would rather go into foreclosure then give a property away.

Its psychology.....And if i have misunderstood you i do apologise but by the same token poeple may want to slam realtors like Amax, but i have alot of people who are of the same opinion who buy property and are screwed over because they didnt use a realtor then expect me to help them and i have to politely say there is nothing i can do now. Had you come to me and engaged my services at the outset then this wouldnt have occured. People complain about Realtors but Buyers dont pay for us and we work hard for them, so i really dont see their problem.

[GregTraub]

Originally Posted by Rich_CD

I was just having trouble understanding why I do business in other markets quickly and smoothly, but in real estate the process used is quite odd. Also, since I have watched the price of listed properties drop below what I would have paid, then watched them go into foreclosure, I wondered why someone hasn't started following a different sales approach (something quicker, easier, and more friendly). I could have saved one of those chaps from going into foreclosure.

Real Estate in general is quite odd. It would be nice to have a more streamlined process to the whole thing, but the fact that there are Millions of individual sellers, all of which have differing degrees of intelligence (emotional and intellectual) and understanding, makes it virtually impossible to buy a re-sale home without taking into consideration the human aspect of the deal.

If the sellers you've contacted had decent realtors, they would have been smart enough to give you a call back when their price came to what you had verbally offered on the phone. I log every single call and inquiry I get on a certain property and make notes. Even if I didn't think you were serious at the time, It would at least be worth a call back to see if you were still in the market and still willing to pay what you offered......of course I'd insist you come see the house at that time

Unfortunately a different approach to the process, just doesn't work for both sides of the equation when selling a home. If someone comes up with one I'm all for it. But selling a home isn't like buying a car or other large ticket item. You can call around and negotiate all day with dealers before even seeing the car when shopping. But they are a business who's sole purpose is selling their cars.....(though they try like H*ll to get you to come into the dealer first). When your in the business of whatever, that sells whatever, you expect alot of wasted energy on "potential" when there may not be any. Home Sellers on the other hand are just laymen, they are not in the business of selling their home, thus won't be bothered with tire kickers and aren't mentally capable of dealing with a potential buyer that doesn't show potential....if you know what I'm trying to say? Real Estate is a pain in the butt, that's why realtors are around, a good one will lessen the pain.

[Rich_CD]

Originally Posted by nickindependence

You may be the sincerest person in the world when you make that offer, but you have no ties to these people and can back out at any time.

<snip>

You say you can go out and buy a property tomorrow, but i was under the impression you wernt able to get them to sell to you and that was what you were complaining about as you then went on to say if they hadnt been greedy they wouldnt be foreclosing. You need to understand, that there are some stubborn people out there who wont sell for a dime under their asking price. Right or wrong its a fact of life. But if you are making serious offers then you will be taken seriously. Perhaps you are offerning a prettly close ball park figure which they would accept but because you wont put it in writing it puts them off. Or you could be trying to get something for nothing. I dont know but greed works both ways and if thats the case most people feel they would rather go into foreclosure then give a property away.

Its psychology.....And if i have misunderstood you i do apologise but by the same token poeple may want to slam realtors like Amax,
<snip>

That's one of the issues, I don't want to be tied in with someone who puts out a price then wants to tie up my time and/or money going back and forth trying to get me to go way up in price. I want to walk away form that type of people! I take time to come up with the right numbers (actually most of it is now semi-automatic, I'm a software engineer and after a few times running the numbers by hand I automated some of it). I'm not looking to make anyone my enemy. I'm looking to buy a nice home to live in. I will not be trapped into a long and drawn out fight over pricing.

I have asked what's the lowest price an owner would take only a couple times and that was because I was trying to get something going. I will *not* do that again. If the home is overpriced I won't even talk about that property for one minute!

I have a property that I can purchase. I would like to find a home closer to the office.

I wasn't saying that if they were not "greedy" they wouldn't have foreclosed. I was saying if I would have called the agent and asked then to see if the owner would have accepted my price and the owner would have, then my price would have been better than what the home price fell to before going into foreclosure.

I understand some people won't go under asking price. I have now adjusted my approach and I won't even inquire about a home that isn't priced close to what I'm willing to pay.

I'm not saying I'm not willing to put things in writing. I'm just saying to prevent wasting my or the seller's time, I would like to know if my price is a price they will accept. I have since found that I will not entertain any properties that look like the seller is fishing. So, I know when I find something listed at the "proper" price I can make an offer. After these discussions I know *not* to include any deposit with the offer, because there are too many people fishing (on both side buyers and sellers). If I include a deposit someone might want to tie up those funds because they were fishing and want to trick me into a situation where I can't walk away from the property before closing.

You don't need to apologize. You didn't offend me. One person posted something that was in effect misrepresenting my opinion, but I don't think it was you unless you use two different accounts on this forum.

I have learned much and I now have a better understanding how the real estate market works.

[Rich_CD]

Originally Posted by GregTraub

If the sellers you've contacted had decent realtors, they would have been smart enough to give you a call back when their price came to what you had verbally offered on the phone.
<snip>
Even if I didn't think you were serious at the time, It would at least be worth a call back to see if you were still in the market and still willing to pay what you offered......of course I'd insist you come see the house at that time

Yes, if I would have been contacted by the agent saying the seller will "now" accept your price. I would then look at the home and send a written offer.

I just thought that with so many people going into foreclosure I would try to help someone out. No more! I will approach my search for a property just like any other business deal.

Also, my numbers showed what the market was going to do and I thought some people would have seen the signs and wanted to know of offers that were low and coming from someone who "can" buy the home. But, that is a moot point now because the market has already collapsed and I am finding homes at prices lower than I would have offered.

So, from my view things are great! I can buy a home without even contacting a real estate agent. I'm not saying I don't like them, just that I'm not forced to use one. I am using one because agents know the neighborhoods. Many sellers are "needing" to get rid of a long list of homes that are costing money to sit around unoccupied.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by Rich_CD

T

I have asked what's the lowest price an owner would take only a couple times and that was because I was trying to get something going.

Why don''t you just tell them the highest price you are willing to pay and see if they want it?

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by Rich_CD

Yes, if I would have been contacted by the agent saying the seller will "now" accept your price. I would then look at the home and send a written offer.

What if you didn't like it? Would you still go through with the deal?

[nickindependence]

In those respects your right, and agents are good because of their vast knowledge of areas. I think i may have mixed you up with Amax who was just ignorant and i apolgise for that.

One thing i would urge you though is if you see a property which is overpriced, dont walk away but put a written offer in, it doesnt hurt because you can put your terms in. Some sellers dont believe their realtor when we say its worth less and when offers come in for around the price we value them at they get a shock and reconsider their prices.

If its a home you really like and would like to buy and are serious then put an offer in, otherwise if your kind of blah about the house and location it makes no sense wasting your time or the sellers. But im afraid it is a fact if you only put verbal offers no one willl take it serious. Once you have agreed to terms then put a deposit down, not neccessarily when you make an offer in writing.

If you have a good agent they will tell you all this.