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I'm sure if the listed price is around $30K, and if I offer cash 50% off, I probably could get it.
You're sure?? Then just do it. Tell us how it turns out. I sure wouldn't give you a 50% discount just because you're offering a quick close...but some desperate soul might.
Of course, just because it's listed at a given price doesn't mean it's worth that price. That's why I mentioned "realistically priced" and other factors in my previous post.
The best buy I ever made was a home listed on the MLS and advertised in Homes and Lands as a Contractor Special...
I went to look at it it was not interested.
The Listing Agent asked me to stop by the office as the sellers were motivated.
Over the course of the conversation she kept fishing for a price... home was listed for 32k
I finally said I wouldn't pay more than 11 or 12k for it...
I did not realize she was preparing an offer...
Next thing is a purchase offer of $11,500 is in front of me with a $100 earnest money deposit...
I said the place just needs so much work and then she said I should give it a try as long I as I understand it is cash and As-Is except for clear title... the city was in the process of condemnation due to all the trash in the yard...
The elderly man that had lived their for 47 years was in poor health the last several years and it became a dumping ground.
Anyway... the next morning I get a phone call congratulating me!!!
It turned out very well... bought it dirt cheap so I could afford to do everything it needed... this was at the same time all of my friends were renting and owned a home in the SF Bay Area outright...
Cleaning, painting, hauling away dumpsters of trash and fixing the broken windows and screens was enough to satisfy the city...
I'm curious if all real estate for sale generally go through the MLS system? I think a bunch of sites like Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, Realtor all got their content from the MLS source if I'm not mistaken. I just don't want to waste my time looking at various sites when I could go straight to the main source (MLS?) I thought only realtors have access to the MLS system? How did you get access to it Ultrarunner?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ultrarunner
The best buy I ever made was a home listed on the MLS and advertised in Homes and Lands as a Contractor Special...
I went to look at it it was not interested.
The Listing Agent asked me to stop by the office as the sellers were motivated.
Over the course of the conversation she kept fishing for a price... home was listed for 32k
I finally said I wouldn't pay more than 11 or 12k for it...
I did not realize she was preparing an offer...
Next thing is a purchase offer of $11,500 is in front of me with a $100 earnest money deposit...
I said the place just needs so much work and then she said I should give it a try as long I as I understand it is cash and As-Is except for clear title... the city was in the process of condemnation due to all the trash in the yard...
The elderly man that had lived their for 47 years was in poor health the last several years and it became a dumping ground.
Anyway... the next morning I get a phone call congratulating me!!!
It turned out very well... bought it dirt cheap so I could afford to do everything it needed... this was at the same time all of my friends were renting and owned a home in the SF Bay Area outright...
Cleaning, painting, hauling away dumpsters of trash and fixing the broken windows and screens was enough to satisfy the city...
OP, you as a buyer can't have direct access to the MLS. Redfin is your best bet in the Baltimore area - listings show up in minute(s) increments of being listed. The site also had the most comprehensive list of facts about the house that I've seen on any RE site; i.e., type of utilities, total taxes. room sizes, street view, etc. BTW, if you are trying to buy a house for such a low price, are you going to be able to afford the RE taxes in Baltimore once you have upgraded the house? They're certainly steep enough to begin with.
Realtor.com is very popular around here... it is one of many but doesn't require you to join or sign in and lists things like days on market... price changes, etc.
About half the homes I have bought were for sale by owner... I have also sold FSBO several times...
I had a great relationship with a local broker prior to her passing away... she knew everything real estate wise foe my area and would alert me to property she thought I might like before it even hit the market... most had problems, some structural and some complicated family situations... she earned every penny and was the hardest working person I had ever met in the business... 24/7 with 35 years in the field.
Buying direct is often not the money saver some think as most sellers that sell direct are also doing so to save money...
One thing that has served me well is dealing with the listing Agent/Broker directly since any offer from anywhere is going through them anyways.
Several very successful investors that hold Real Estate Licenses give up their cut of the transaction because they want all Realtors to bring in deals knowing they will not have to take a commission cut.
One thing that has served me well is dealing with the listing Agent/Broker directly since any offer from anywhere is going through them anyways.
But you seem to be rather experienced. I don't think it's good to recommend to newbies that they work directly with a Listing Agent. There are multiple threads on here which exemplify why that is not a good practice.
But you seem to be rather experienced. I don't think it's good to recommend to newbies that they work directly with a Listing Agent. There are multiple threads on here which exemplify why that is not a good practice.
But you seem to be rather experienced. I don't think it's good to recommend to newbies that they work directly with a Listing Agent. There are multiple threads on here which exemplify why that is not a good practice.
I've always worked with listing agent directly (except for the first home I ever purchase) and had good success. However, I would not recommend this for anyone who is purchasing a home for the first time.
I have never completed a purchase that was not made through the listing agent/broker...
The market here is so darn competitive with multiple overbids and going quickly into contract it tends to leave others in the dust.
What I absolutely hate is when a property is advertised with a 10 day viewing period to submit written offers with deposits to be opened at the end of the viewing period with many offers well exceeding the listing price only to have 10 or 15 that made offers be "Invited" to submit highest and final offers for a second round.
Things like this absolute frost me because it is a waste of time all around.
It has happened twice to me in the last 12 months and property was offered through big national brokerage firms and the last one the listing Broker was the local board President...
She also promised to submit my offer and then handed me off to someone else in the office who had never closed an escrow...
What I absolutely hate is when a property is advertised with a 10 day viewing period to submit written offers with deposits to be opened at the end of the viewing period with many offers well exceeding the listing price only to have 10 or 15 that made offers be "Invited" to submit highest and final offers for a second round.
I don't like to submit "highest and best" offers either. But if it were your house for sale, what would you prefer?
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