Buyers market in FL? (days on market, for sale, appliances)

[shegoes]

I have never had the joy of home searching when it is a buyers market as it appears to be in the Ft Myers area. I am looking at manufactured homes in Pine lakes, Fairways and Del Tura communities. It seems many of these homes have been for sale for a while which does not scare me. I plan on this being my final home so resale is not a problem.( when I croak I will will it to my niece) When the ad says seller will take offers and it is a 50,00 home just what can I reasonably offer and not get laughed out of town? I know this will differ in each situation but generally is there a rule of thumb? Also do most people get inspections done on the home prior to purchase? Because of the tropical weather are there any things in particular I should be watchful of as regards home condition?

[nhkev]

Originally Posted by shegoes

I have never had the joy of home searching when it is a buyers market as it appears to be in the Ft Myers area. I am looking at manufactured homes in Pine lakes, Fairways and Del Tura communities. It seems many of these homes have been for sale for a while which does not scare me. I plan on this being my final home so resale is not a problem.( when I croak I will will it to my niece) When the ad says seller will take offers and it is a 50,00 home just what can I reasonably offer and not get laughed out of town? I know this will differ in each situation but generally is there a rule of thumb? Also do most people get inspections done on the home prior to purchase? Because of the tropical weather are there any things in particular I should be watchful of as regards home condition?

I would not call it a buyers market or a sellers market. it is a neutral market. avg days on market is 43 which is low. sales price to ask ratio is 93% which is also strong. what this says is the houses you are looking at (if on the market for a long time) are over priced. Look to see what similar houses have sold for "recently" not back in 2006. I would start with what houses have sold for and how the house you are interested in differs and if those differences add value or take away value. always, always, always make a home inspection a condition of the sale. you will need to be concerned with mechanicals, appliances, roof, pests, mold, septic system, etc. way too much for the avg home owner so hire a specialist and be there when it is being done. When you find a house that fits what you are looking for and you find it is reasonable priced compared to current sales I would offer somewhere in the 88-90% of asking price giving yourself a little wiggle room for counter offers. you never know how badly someone needs to sell. but don't get too caught up in the offer/counter offer game. Don't let your perfect house get away because you were $1000 apart.

[fiege1224]

There shouldn't be any bad offers. It should be what you can afford to pay based on what you have coming in for income and can live with. I love when realtors tell you don't want to insult them with to low of an offer. I have had so many realtors over the years bring me low ball offers I stopped counting years ago. Some I closed and some I said no too. I can say one thing if your offer is high and they accept you will never no just how low you could have offered and bought it at. You can always go up but can't come down in offers. I always say there is always another deal down the street that won't think my low ball is really a low ball after all. That way I get a very good deal. Remember manufactured homes can be hard to get loans on in todays market. That effects the value a lot and makes them harder to sell. That could explain why a lot of them are sitting on the market not sold. Or they are just over priced. Good luck on the home looking.

[mattdaddy204]

There are many factors in making an offer on a home. Age of home, type of home, maintenace of home, home inspection report, roof, location, etc.. I always look at the surrounding homes to see what they have sold for in the last 6 months, then decide on whether the seller is anxious to sell. How many days has the home been on the market? If all of these things are in my favor I will offer 20% lower than the asking price. Hey it's a starting point of negotiation. If they want to sell you will see a counteroffer.