Waterfront Property for Sale! (See the For Sale sign by the garbage cans?)
Time to re-analyze the best marketing plan for this home! OK, Duvall realtors, let’s have a Sunday Tour of Homes by Boat! Better yet, let’s get this home Off the Market!
Though this is an extreme case, Northwest sellers are having a Sale! Sellers that really need to sell are making incredible deals. This is more than a seasonal slump, this slump has been created by the media as much as anything, rates having dropped. We’re seeing offers 10-15% off our normal market conditions of 99% list to sell. But, like any sale, you have to buy from the available choices (like above?). So buyers, if you want a deal, be prepared to not buy your ‘perfect home’ For that, you’ll have to wait until more buyers are back and the demand goes up enough for sellers to relist their homes and get our normal market values, which is anticipated (by some, me included) to be 3-10% better in 2007 than in 2006.
It’s really tempting to just take a vacation from now until February. I should have saved more nuts for the winter! My advice to sellers this year, JUST HOLD OFF selling until late January unless you have no choice or if you are going to sell and buy and be a bottom feeder yourself!
If the media is causing the slump, did it also create the boom?
Seriously, credit expansions are always followed by retractions, this time is different in that “the media” is causing the slowdown?
Did you miss ‘ol Greenspans speach about periods of low risk premiums?
That’s fair, Eric. And I said the media caused it “as much as anything” another factor, of course, was interest rate going up. So, yes the media affected the boom too. Why else all the buying frenzy.
Being in the trenches, I see a renewed buyer interest already which is why I think prices will go up in the early spring. My web traffic is climbing back up from a high in July, there are more investors than investments. The builders are pulling back which means that we may very well have a shortage of new construction once this inventory is used up.
Let’s wait and see.
Eileen, I’m wondering what exactly ‘being in the trenches’ means.
Since this is Veterans Day weekend I can’t help but think about the inference to the horrific existence WWI soldiers endured while living, fighting, and dying ‘in the trenches’.
A more modern connection ‘in the trenches’ evolved from the discription of the physical battle on the line of scrimmage in football where very powerful large individuals slam into each other often resulting in broken bones, torn ligaments, and concussions.
I know life is slower up in Bellingham but I had no idea how rough and tumble business is down in the big city. I tip my hat to you.
bob
Bob:
Guess there’s lots of differnet contexts for “trenches” aren’t there.
I’ll rephrase and just say that real estate can be pretty *** tough.
And cheers to our brave Veterans this weekend and always!
In reading the post…especially the part about the media…I’m reminded of what my dad said to me 27 years ago before he passed on. My dad was a well known plaster and drywall contrator in the South Puget Sound for about 40 years. At the time, he felt that I was going to take over his business and he said to me…”Jerry, Always remember, you can do 99 good jobs, and one bad one…thats the one they will remember”
Bad news always travels at light speed and the media & public feeds on that. Just look at your local news channels…do they talk about steve the nice guy down the street that was citizen of the year for his town…or instead about this burlary, or this fire or…fill in the blank yourself.
Eileen is right on the money with her thougts
Good Advice, Eileen!
On the house pictured, the realtor probably should wait until the water goes down before showing it. Don’t think one could get away with advertising it as waterfront, however, since this only happens every few years ;
Jerry:
Do you believe the press represents people’s sentiment or does it drive it? I kind of think people lean towards optimism, so I wonder if it sells because it’s the only choice we have or because we really want to hear bad news. I think the former and I think that being optimistic about things isn’t politically popular, but I also think deep down inside everyone wants to be.
Sort of like Disney deciding to only associate with healthy food only, advertise on cheese and fruit. Do you think kids will change their habits or do you think the lack of healthy food choices is because kids don’t want it.
Can you imagine how bad that’s gonna be for the wiring? I saw the houses in New Orleans and everything was rotten.
BYW, you’re with integrity. Do you think that there will be a security problem with the new wireless network downtown Bellevue?