[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

Now to answer your questions...I agree with the comments about price usually being the issue, but I have also noticed there is a lot more inventory these days which allows buyers to be choosier so a house that might be slightly outdated will sit longer today than it would have back in 07. I don't think you can base your future selling potential on what is happening in the market today, unless you have a crystal ball, no one can say for certain where the housing market will be in 5 years.

Also, you are not ready to buy a house. Continue to rent.

Whoa, fantastic advice!

[DawnMTL]

I agree that it has a lot to do with price, but I think that timing is an issue, too. Not "timing" in the sense of it being a seller's market or a strong economy, but also the time of the season.

We knew that we'd be moving at the end of August or early September. We put our house on the market right at the beginning of the season, in early March.

We also weren't sure that this was a true real estate slump, so we priced it too high. (We had hoped to get our money back from the kitchen remodel. Little did we know that we wouldn't even get back the price that we paid for the house in 2007, never mind the kitchen costs! But that's a whole other sob story.)

We had a TON of viewings. A TON! But no offers. We continually dropped our price. Still no offers. Finally, we got an offer -- which we negotiated and took -- in early August. So, the house had been on the market for about 150 days.

What I noticed, however, is that during our March through July "oh my God, we're NEVER going to sell our house" scare, that nobody else was getting their house sold either. Not that that felt better, but still... It was just an odd time, with almost nobody being able to sell their house.

Fast forward to August... we got an offer, two other houses in our neighborhood got offers, things started moving. I kept an eye on it and a lot more sales were happening than through the spring and summer.

Whether buyers were hedging their bets, whether the school year was starting soon and they wanted to get settled before the kids were starting school, whether one sale dominoed into others, whether the slight decrease in inventory was making people scared that the house that they liked (but hadn't put an offer in for) was going to be snatched up... who knows? But the end of the season seemed to be a HUGE difference from the beginning and middle of it.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

but I have also noticed there is a lot more inventory these days which allows buyers to be choosier so a house that might be slightly outdated will sit longer today than it would have back in 07.

More inventory = lower prices.

Outdated house = less value.

It's still ALL about price.

[Cambium]

You can use this link to search for data by town... Market Statistics

Here's a nice detailed Second Quarter Report: 3rd quarter should be out soon.

Connecticut CT Real Estate Market Report: Prudential Connecticut Realty

Pending Sales:
The largest increases were found in the Litchfield and Hartford counties at 24% and 16%,

Current Inventory
The time it took to sell off inventory, including those homes under contract at the time, remained relatively unchanged for the second quarter of 2011. When compared to the first quarter of 2011, single family homes and condominiums remained static with 11.7 months and 10 months of unsold inventory. In the second quarter of 2010, homes sold in 8 to 9 months. This represents an increase of 32% for single family and 10% for condominiums, and indicates that despite the higher amount of pending sales recorded, more listings remain available year to year.


Days on Market
With lower closed sales thus far in 2011, it has taken longer to sell a home this year. The average number of days to sell a single family home has increased to just over 158 days, up 8% from last year. The same held true for condominium sales, now taking an average of 168 days to sell with an increase of 3.6% over last year.

[Cambium]

Keep in mind... "current inventory" means if NO OTHER homes come onto the market, it will take that long to sell everything. I think at one point in 2007 that number was like 2 months. lol

[jp03]

Originally Posted by DandJ

I agree that it has a lot to do with price, but I think that timing is an issue, too. Not "timing" in the sense of it being a seller's market or a strong economy, but also the time of the season.

We knew that we'd be moving at the end of August or early September. We put our house on the market right at the beginning of the season, in early March.

We also weren't sure that this was a true real estate slump, so we priced it too high. (We had hoped to get our money back from the kitchen remodel. Little did we know that we wouldn't even get back the price that we paid for the house in 2007, never mind the kitchen costs! But that's a whole other sob story.)

We had a TON of viewings. A TON! But no offers. We continually dropped our price. Still no offers. Finally, we got an offer -- which we negotiated and took -- in early August. So, the house had been on the market for about 150 days.

What I noticed, however, is that during our March through July "oh my God, we're NEVER going to sell our house" scare, that nobody else was getting their house sold either. Not that that felt better, but still... It was just an odd time, with almost nobody being able to sell their house.

Fast forward to August... we got an offer, two other houses in our neighborhood got offers, things started moving. I kept an eye on it and a lot more sales were happening than through the spring and summer.

Whether buyers were hedging their bets, whether the school year was starting soon and they wanted to get settled before the kids were starting school, whether one sale dominoed into others, whether the slight decrease in inventory was making people scared that the house that they liked (but hadn't put an offer in for) was going to be snatched up... who knows? But the end of the season seemed to be a HUGE difference from the beginning and middle of it.

Maybe everybody figured out what you did..the price was too high...its all about price now....All of it. You were actually lucky to get anything even close to 2007 prices.

[DawnMTL]

Originally Posted by jp03

Maybe everybody figured out what you did..the price was too high...its all about price now....All of it. You were actually lucky to get anything even close to 2007 prices.

Actually, we didn't get anything close to what we paid for it in 2007. But we were very happy to just get the thing sold. Two mortgages did NOT feel good, in any way, shape, or form.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by DandJ

Actually, we didn't get anything close to what we paid for it in 2007. But we were very happy to just get the thing sold. Two mortgages did NOT feel good, in any way, shape, or form.

No it doesn't. Full time daycare for two kids is indeed a second mortgage.

[DawnMTL]

Originally Posted by JViello

No it doesn't. Full time daycare for two kids is indeed a second mortgage.

I bet! And we only had a few months of it. You've got... oh, I'll shut up now.

[jp03]

Originally Posted by DandJ

Actually, we didn't get anything close to what we paid for it in 2007. But we were very happy to just get the thing sold. Two mortgages did NOT feel good, in any way, shape, or form.

Same here..we bought in Charlotte in 07 and were just thrilled to sell the thing this year. We feel lucky to have even sold it..how crazy is that? Lots of inventory here. I was telling someone this year the buyers used me like a punching bag. Next year its MY turn.