Showings dropping off in 2nd/3rd week. How can I improve showings in this market? (Dallas: loan, how much)

[Spree]

>>Have two more offers close to the first one. We are negotiating with 3rd offer.<,

This is good news! What are the average days houses are on market in your area and what % of asking price are houses getting sold at?

[Ballyhigh]

And if you purchased in the same market with a 45% realized gain, chances are you bought into someone else's 45% gain, which in the end was a net loss (due to transaction fees, taxes, interest, insurance) unless you exited the market altogether.

I am out of the market right now. Happily renting in collin county. What we really like about renting is that we can pick and choose schools.

259% whoooaaa. nice. But who is to say it could not come down that much in 5 years????? Would you buy it knowing that there is a chance that it could come back down? even half of that?

[Plano_Pal]

Ballyhigh's comments:
Furthermore.
If prices stay sticky then the process will just last longer. It is just basic economics. The salarys have not kept up with housing prices. It is just wringing out. It has to happen. Especially with credit getting tighter.
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Salary's are not keeping up with prices? I'll do another quick math again to see if it is true by looking at Affordability Index.

I have taken numbers below from this website:
Plano, Texas (TX) Detailed Profile - relocation, real estate, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, news, sex offenders

Median Monthly income in Plano = $5963.33 (Annual median income - Shown at City-Data)

Qualifying Ratio of Principal and Interest payment that most lenders use = 28%

then

($5963.33 * 0.28) = $1669.73 (this is how much you can afford to pay/month)

Median price of home in Plano = $196,000 (median home price from city-data)

So at 80% financing or 20% down subtraced = $156,800

@ interest rate = 5.75 for 30 YR loan Payments are: $915.04

To calculate Affordibility index = $1669.73/$915.04 = 1.8247
1.8247 * 100 = 182.47

Anything below 100 means home prices are not keeping up with income.
But Plano, afforadability Index = 182.47. Now, where am I seeing a 'crash'
comming? Help me understand this please...


Do this same math for other areas and you will quickly see that there is/will not be a down market here and no correction needed. Infact, prices can go up as high as 5%/yrs (I'm just picking a number here) for next several years before we are even in the 'yellow' region of inflated market (not even RED).

No wonders I do see offers are pouring in (although low ball's but for other reasons that I DO know)

[Plano_Pal]

Originally Posted by Spree

>>Have two more offers close to the first one. We are negotiating with 3rd offer.<,

This is good news! What are the average days houses are on market in your area and what % of asking price are houses getting sold at?

Hi Spree, If I remember correctly, I think it was like 50 days or so and houses were sold anywhere 95-102% of asking price.

[Ballyhigh]

The best case scenario is that the spring selling season will be flat. Hopefully close to what it was last spring.

But it won't. It is gonna get smashed.

I predict prices will come down at least 20%. That means that on the median priced home in Plano of $196,000, that house could cost $40,000 less.

Why buy in the spring? Why not wait and see. You could get a lot more house if the price goes down and you waited to buy. If you buy in the spring and it goes down later, you could be upside down. Now is a bad time to be upside down on a loans my friends. What with all the new bankruptcy laws. Better safe than sorry.

[Ballyhigh]

(although low ball's but for other reasons that I DO know)

care to share

[Plano_Pal]

Originally Posted by Ballyhigh

(although low ball's but for other reasons that I DO know)

care to share

Has NOTHING to do with property/neighbourhood or anything like it. Just the false "perception" of buyers towards seller (perhaps, they have seen me somewhere and I looked too "easygoing" to be a hard negotiator...:-).......

Sure, will do that - once I'm done....:-).

[Plano_Pal]

Originally Posted by Ballyhigh

........But it won't. It is gonna get smashed.
I predict prices will come down at least 20%. That means that on the median priced home in Plano of $196,000, that house could cost $40,000 less.............

All I can say is ...... Oh Really?. RUN fellow sellers, let's dump our houses for a $1.... I'm going to stop myself trusting data/local economy and other indicators....

I'm just "lucky" to have offers at least 92% of asking price.... with only few weeks in the market or am I just asking too little and buyers just wanted to negotiate to the last dollar out of my pocket.....

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by Ballyhigh

I am out of the market right now. Happily renting in collin county. What we really like about renting is that we can pick and choose schools.

So you see it as an advantage to uproot your kids, change their schools, move them from house/apartment to another place to live???? No thanks. There is MUCH to be said about stability. You do know it costs money for every move, right? What a waste of money.

Meanwhile, I'll be sitting nice and MORTGAGE FREE at the ripe old age of 50! I won't have to worry about the real estate market as I won't be in the market to sell. I won't have RENT or a mortgage payment to make. WOO-HOO!!!

Ah yes, I'm still going to be paying for utilities, taxes and insurance but those are ALL things that EVERY person pays be they RENT or buy. You just pay the taxes thru to the landlord as well as their basic homeowners insurance and don't get the benefit of taking it off your income tax . They sure are not going to foot the bill for all of the costs of owning a house. If the market goes sky high and rents go up in my golden years I'm going to be sitting MUCH better off than those that would rather rent for the years when they are making their highest wages. Being a renter puts you in the market of being TOO suspectible to higher values and risks not being able to find a place to live even in a good school district.

[DWong]

Originally Posted by loves2read

you don't get to deduct from income tax due the amount of money you put into your 401K--the money YOU put in is not taxed which lowers your overall taxable amount--BUT it many not significantly change the amount of taxes that you owe unless it does drop you from one tax bracket to another--
the interest that you pay for a home mortgage IS offset as deduction on your income tax return--
so I think in all fairness, you would have to check both ways to see which one caused the lower amount of taxes to be paid...
for the average homeowner, I think paying interest would actually save them more on income tax situation -- because that is likely a greater % than 401K amount--when you first take out a mortgage MOST of the monthly payment is interest---I don't think most people are actually saving 1000K a month into 401K

what I was sure that $$ I put into my 401k was tax deductible (anyone help me here).Oh wait, it lowers my taxable income you're right, but for math purposes....
If I can put away 20,000 a year in an investment
Or the same into housing in TX, where am I going to make better after short and long runs?