how much to offer on condo? (bank owned, short sales, buyers)

[spunky1]

Originally Posted by Lookin4work918

Thanks for all your advise. Asking is $209,000 with one year no monthly fees, I put in an offer for $169,000 (all cash to close 30 days) but.....There is TONS FOR sale in that unit and I have done all my research. The place is empty and has been for sale for over a year...
...my realtor came back with " a unit close by just sold for $205,000". NOt sure if that meant I am way out of my ballpark???

The realtor is given it his/her best shot. . to keep resale values up, and to keep her commision up. I would tell her that you are a serious buyer and you are not offering a penny more. . If it was me and I was willing to pay 150k I would have started with offering $140.00 Condos are a dime a dozen in Orlando now. . . There was just an article in the local paper stating that people were getting forclosed on and they were all turning into rentals. You are in the drivers seat. .
That response from the realor was to test you. . It's a buyers market. Be careful.

[Lookin4work918]

The problem is NOTHING has sold and no comps to compare..So we have nothing to compare to unless we go back a year or so when they were at there highest price.

UGH

[Jfunk]

I am not sure which part of stonebridge you are speaking of the complex is divided into a few different areas (carriage homes, horizons, mandalay, lakes & commons) but there have been a total of 13 units sold this year between them and there are also 5 currently pending. So you should be able to get a pretty good idea of what the SF price is going for.

[Stupid Flanders]

Originally Posted by Lookin4work918

Thanks for all your advise. Asking is $209,000 with one year no monthly fees, I put in an offer for $169,000 (all cash to close 30 days) but.....There is TONS FOR sale in that unit and I have done all my research. The place is empty and has been for sale for over a year...
...my realtor came back with " a unit close by just sold for $205,000". NOt sure if that meant I am way out of my ballpark???

How much will that condo be worth to you when 60% of your neighbors are renters? That's the price I would offer.

[OrlandoMom]

Check the Metrowest zip code at Moderator cut: link removed. I think you can find a better area & still not have a long commute. Which theme park? Why a condo? Do you have a family? If so consider single-family. I've heard a few condo fee increase nightmare stories. Make sure you factor all of the costs to see if it is more economical or not.

[Southbeachboy79]

We live in the Ventura condos in Metrowest and we are homeowners. We prefer a condo over a single family home because we feel it's actually less expensive overall. For example, our electric bill this month is $62 for a 3 bedroom corner unit. We'll agree that the association dues are ridiculous, but you're going to run into the same thing in the condo conversion communities. It's funny, I have coworkers with single family homes who have electric bills that run the same as my association dues. So I guess it's all perspective. We can say thay they do a nice job of caring for the community.

Previous to buying here, we lived in 4 different apartment communities in Metrowest, all of which became condo conversions. We know that the condo conversion communities in Metrowest have a good number of renters, and we're sure the ratio is much higher than any of the Stonebridge communities. Either way, it's just something that comes along with the territory. We have some renters in my building. Living there, we don't see it as a negative.

The one thing we would point out is the construction. You cannot compare the former apartment communities with the Stonebridge communities. They are brick rather than wood like all the condo conversions. And let me tell you, the elevator comes in handy too.

In places like The Hamptons, where we lived in two different units over a 3 year span, we could hear the couple next to us arguing and yelling at each other at night and the couple on the other side of our bedroom wall having sex at night. Then there were the partiers above us and the guy with the surround sound below us and the barking dog. It's not a slam on the Hamptons, they were built as apartments. It was somewhat expected in a rental because you just don't get top quality, but when you are buying it, your expectations should increase. Stonebridge units are actually pretty quiet. You just don't experience the noise level.

Metrowest is a nice area and we think prices will bounce back. The real problem was investors who came in and thought they could turn a quick buck. Those are likely the people who are trying to dump their units below cost. Eventually all that will play out and the pricing will stablize. The new medical wing at Valencia will help, but so will the Verandah Park complex once it's completed.

We just thought we would give the perspective of people who live there. We've been in our unit since the fall of 2005 and we're quite happy with it.

[cfIfan]

Originally Posted by Rich_CD

Your research seems pretty good. I checked the current numbers and they are down ~20% from recent numbers. So, $40K off asking price is inline with the market. However, I'm not saying that it's inline with "actual" value for the property. I'm not an expert, but without doing the numbers I would think that $169K is a bit over "actual" value.

Your realtor? How much did you pay your realtor to do that research? If you payed nothing then that is what the research is worth, nothing. Realtors work for the seller, unless you are paying them a consulting fee (then they must come up with "actual" numbers or you can sue them). Realtors usually get a percentage of the selling price, which means (if they aren't insane) they want the price to be higher so they make more money.

Why do so many people miss that conflict of interest? The realtor wants you to spend the *most* money, because that is how they *make* the most money. A realtor is there to promote the seller's property. The buyer has to do their own homework to determine how much to pay.

Im sorry, but i dont think you understand the realities of the situation. Realtors represent both buyers and sellers. The only time there could be a possible conflict of interest and there are strict guidelines on this is in a transaction broker situation where a realtor represents both buyer and seller. A buyers agent may be paid by the sellers, but we represent the buyers, so in effect we work for the buyer for free. I see no conflict here. Its not in our best interests to push buyers over what they want to pay because then they will simply back out or find another realtor.

[cagman]

I wouldn't offer more than 150k for any 2 bedroom condo in metrowest. Maybe a little more for a stonebridge condo, those are a little nicer than the rest of metrowest.

[DailyJournalist]

Originally Posted by GEO_GEOVANNI

3 bedroom, 2 baths condo "APPROVED" for 135K thats right $135,000.00 must close by Oct 5th, 2008!

VENTURA AT STONEBRIDGE COMMONS CONDO, METROWEST ORLANDO

Metrowest

[cfIfan]

I hope that wasnt an advert for a property...lol tut tut tut. Even if it is approved for that amount as a short sale, unless a title search brings back that the property is free from liens it doesnt mean anything as a potential buyer could end up paying more just to clear the liens from the title so that the transfer can occur. If its in a short sale then the owners obviously dont have any money as otherwise they wouldnt be in a short sale, so they obviously cant pay off any liens should they be any.