The housing market is moving fast and some homebuyers are getting lost! I have had several clients get a little frustrated over the last couple months as homes are flying off the market! The housing inventory is low and so it seems like as soon as a home is listed, it is sold! Great for sellers, frustrating for buyers!
There are a few things you can do so you are prepared for this. The first thing is to be ready to write an offer. Make sure you have your mortgage approval so that when you find a home that you want to buy, you can!
If you are looking at foreclosures and thinking you will be able to offer less and get a great deal, be prepared for a surprise. Many foreclosures are already listed at the lowest price the bank will take and with the current market, you may have to offer more than the list price. If you need the seller to pay closing costs for you, you may have to offer more than you thought. Remember the seller nets the price minus any seller paid closing costs (along with realtor fees, etc).
Maybe a home has been on the market for a long time. You decide to write an offer but want to offer a lot less than the list price. With the current market, the home owner may be thinking they can get more than you want to pay. The homeowner may not care if they sell or not, so they may not be willing to take a lower price. Or maybe they have to get that price in order to sell the home.
One of the most common problems we are seeing now is homes selling very quickly. If you see a home you love, there is a good chance it may not be there in a day or two. If you love it, someone else will too! It's hard to write an offer immediately, but you need to be prepared to do that. This is part of the frustration for buyers these days. If you are in a market that is moving quickly, especially homes priced under $200,000, you will want to be prepared to go see a new listing as soon as it comes on the market.
