Realtors - how's the market doing?

[Mrs.JT]

Originally Posted by riaelise

I'm afraid I wouldn't recommend those condos. In addition to being mass produced DR Hortons, they are adjacent to a Section 8 housing complex.

The DR Horton thing, I get...that's why I included the FYI. I wouldn't do DR Horton, myself. If the poster is just concerned about location and price, DR Horton will do, I guess.

But the Section 8 housing? I had no idea. Are you talking about those apartments next door?


Otherwise, I think there are some condos within the 250K range in Highland Park in Pflugerville. I'm not 100% certain, though.

[A-Tex]

Originally Posted by RunninJT

So I either get screwed by a realtor who wants to make a quick buck and convinces me to list the house for bare minimum or I get sued because their realtor knows how to use the rules against me? Those are my options?

And you wonder why some people have trust issues with realtors. At this point it just does not seem worth it to even try and I should just rent my place for barely enough to cover the mortgage while I move up north and rent a duplex in a ghetto.

A reputable realtor isn't going to do that. Do your research and select a realtor accordingly.

[k374]

This was the case in Southern California, I don't know if it's going to repeat in Austin. In Orange County, California you could buy a nice 2000sqft townhouse for $300-350k in the late 90s...now those are a million dollars which means it's tripled in value in about 20 years. It did crash 50% in 2011-12 but immediately shot back up after the Fed started QE programs. What happens next nobody knows but it's a gamble.

If you buy a $300k home and it drops to $200k you can take that risk, if it's $1 million and it falls to $500k (like it did in '12 and there were foreclosures galore) you're Fked!

[JT-3]

Too many "Realtors" posting in this thread.

[livedeverywhere123]

Originally Posted by RunninJT

Have you sold your own homes before without a realtor? My friends are telling me to just hire a realtor but they also have something I do not, Trust Funds. $10k could be all the difference in the world in a move from state to state.

I have. Put a sign in the front, did a little advertising, had a little open house, signed all the paper work at my lawyers office, saved me 10k and I'm not some genius. House sold in 60 days with multiple offers. I did live in a desirable area and probably wouldn't recommend it if you don't.

good place to start would be here - FSBO.com | Sellers. Not sure if they'll let the link stay up, but you can google some fsbo tips.

Also info on how to use a title company. https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums...-title-company

[A-Tex]

Originally Posted by JT-3

Too many "Realtors" posting in this thread.

I'm not one.

[mrsengle]

Well, this thread took a few twists and turns...I was asking for the sake of curiosity more than anything. A friend of ours is moving back there soon. He sold when the market was in the ditch back in 2008 or so. I can look at the comps and understand, but I like to hear word of mouth

Our first place was in Pflugerville - actually, it was annexed to Pflugerville but we kept a Round Rock address. My husband bought that place brand new (before we met), right before the dot com bubble burst. When someone posted about those condos for $275K, our jaws hit the floor. OMG that's nuts!

We bought a place in Georgetown Village and rented out that home in Pflugerville, because we would've been writing a check at closing - and that was still 10 years after he bought it. After being in that house for three years, the market again picked up, and we moved to Seattle. The house went under contract quickly and we were happy to see some equity, for sure. Last year, a friend of mine had $250K in cash and couldn't land a place that fed into McNeil. It took almost 6 months of searching - houses went under contract faster than they could tour them. In Round Rock. That's insane.