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I think ANY house you buy in 2009 will be worth less in 2010. I think you have to 100% be willing to accept that fact if you are going to buy in this market. Minimizing that loss should be your goal here if you WANT/HAVE to buy now versus later.
$8k. Seems like a lot but not really in the grand scheme of things. I would crunch my numbers of Rent vs Buy. Tax savings and monthly outtake over the next year. Also factor in interest rates to some degree since 5% is low and eventually those will rise and no one can determine if those rise that housing will match them by falling in the same proportion.
If you know that this house is where you want to be LONG term and I mean possibly 10+ years and you can make the numbers work for you I would be hard pressed to let the house go.
I am not stating that in 10 years the house will be worth more than what you paid for it today but the odds are it will be closer to what you paid for it then over the next few years and maybe more.
Where you can say for a certainity that the next 2-3 years you are not selling for any profit. (realtor fees alone will ensure that)
The Gov't is fighting to fix the housing market. No doubt about it. Obamas foreclosure plan, $8k 1st time buyer credit, etc... and who knows what else is coming down the pike. Hopefully they are trying to just slow the bleed and really stop the bottom from overshooting which odds are it will do without intervention...
I know in my area I am being SUPER picky about location, etc... If I found a house that was in the right spot and was in decent shape and priced FAIR or even $10k over FAIR then I would jump on it. That is also because I hope my next house will be mine till paid off and then some. Sure things can change to alter that thinking but odds are it will be a LONG LONG term house. So as long as I am comfortable with the monthly payment and the house/location itself I will jump. If I lose $20k over the next year then so be it. Not realized till I sell. And I have plently of time for the market to catch back up. Even with a 3% annual appreciation starting in say 2013 after a few more years of negative growth it will come back around.
In NJ I would be more concerned about Property taxes becoming unaffordable more than anything.
...the problem is that they are in no rush to sell according to my realtor
Realtors can be helpful at many points in the purchasing process, but when it comes to final negotiations, remember one thing: they get paid only if the house gets sold. In other words, they will subtly -- or not so subtly -- try to move you to purchase, and sooner not later. Most realtors, even "your" realtor, won't advise you to pass this one by, even if that's the wisest thing for you to do, if they sense that you're on the verge of making a higher offer. Instead, they will give you information, such as the above, that will induce you to raise your offer. If your realtor is communicating directly with the seller, you might want to be careful about what you tell the realtor about how much you want this house.
One other thing: has the seller agreed to compensate your realtor? If it's a true FSBO, the seller may not have been expecting to pay any commissions. If the seller isn't paying your realtor, who is?
Although this house may seem cheaper than comps in the neighborhood, this seller may have calculated that, without a commission to pay, he can lower his asking price and still get the same net price as his neighbors.
As with any purchase, but especially with a FSBO, hire a very good inspector to protect you from hidden problems. Do NOT minimize any findings, despite how much you want the house.
thanks all! good info & tips. FYI - we came and met the seller at 320K and he decided to not sell. FOR SALE BY OWNERS suck! I had a gut feeling that they were reconsidering....
back to the drawing board...
the house across the st from this one is for sale too. it is also very nice. but it is priced at 345K and needs a little more work....
thanks all! good info & tips. FYI - we came and met the seller at 320K and he decided to not sell. FOR SALE BY OWNERS suck! I had a gut feeling that they were reconsidering....
back to the drawing board...
the house across the st from this one is for sale too. it is also very nice. but it is priced at 345K and needs a little more work....
thanks all! good info & tips. FYI - we came and met the seller at 320K and he decided to not sell. FOR SALE BY OWNERS suck! I had a gut feeling that they were reconsidering....
back to the drawing board...
the house across the st from this one is for sale too. it is also very nice. but it is priced at 345K and needs a little more work....
ugh...
Maybe he decided not to sell it to you after low balling?
Very possible
I also found a house at in your price range that was in a neighborhood where the houses weren't selling at all.
Asking for advice in C-D, people also said to lowball, which I did. The homeowner was promptly insulted.
We went back, talked it out, and we bought for 20k off asking.
Basically, the homeowner said flat out that if he had no buyers, he was liquid enough to move to his new place and then he'd rent out the house. The wife and I both loved the house and we made the move. The house has everything we want outside of a large backyard, but it's good enough for what we want right now.
Don't listen to the people on the board who berate you about the purchase YOU want to make. When it's right, it's right. Study the area. Know EVERYTHING about the town you want to live in.
I studied the towns that we were buying in. I knew them like the back of my hand. And I knew that the place we bought would be perfect.
I didn't get a "great deal", but I got the place we wanted. There's a difference.
People talk about value and all this other crap blah blah blah blah. We moved from a one-bed room apartment to a tax-deductible investment that we can live and grown in for seven years. We are spending no more on mortgage and taxes than what we were spending on rent and saving for the house.
yes this seller made it clear that he was not happy that we brought a realtor to the table that he would have to pay
Sorry you missed this one, but there's a good chance you'll have the option to buy it again at a substantially reduced price in the near future.
This deal not going through will probably be one of the best financial turn of events you could have hoped for. Keep your chin up - you'll find a house for you at a fair price soon. Prices are going nowhere but down.
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