Buyers, a serious question you need to ask yourself in our lower end housing market in San Marcos, Oceanside and other nearby communities is "how fast can you move?" 

Of course being able to move into a home quickly may have strong appeal for some sellers. Or, an appropriate question for a seller might be how fast can you move, since a buyer may want, or need, to take possession within 30 days. 

But the question I am posing now to buyers in our real estate market is how fast you can move because of what we see happening with the low end market (especially below $400,000), a market where there is lots of competition from first time buyers. 

I've written before that you cannot call our market a buyers' market - it's over-rated. I truly believe it. Here is just one recent example. 

A fixer single story home came on the market on Monday at $220,000. I have a buyer from Northern California who was very interested and emailed me on Tuesday about it. I went to see the home Wednesday, then back for more photos on Thursday morning. A quick call to the agent revealed that they already had had 10 offers and one had been accepted by the bank for more than 10% above asking barely 72 hours later. Hard to compete with that unless you move fast. 

And if you are out of the area and can't get to town quickly to see a new listing, it very well will be gone before you can visit. Or you can make the decision to present an offer sight-unseen if you feel comfortable doing so and have an agent who can provide you with lots of information, photos, and interior and exterior videos.

This is but one example I have seen recently. 

Some other data to ponder - 68% of the detached homes on the market in San Marcos and Oceanside under $300,000 are CONTINGENT, i.e., they already have offers being considered by the banks. 

Does this mean every home in this price range is moving that fast. No, but the trend I see is that because of the buyer demand and the reduced inventory in the lower prices ranges, people are actively looking and are prepared to make offers immediately. 

Naturally you should not move fast unless you feel it is the right thing to do, you've done your homework, and you and your agent have discussed a strategy. And you are pre-approved. But many dedicated and serious buyers are finding they are missing out on properties because they do not move fast enough, and perhaps are also coming in with offers that are just not competitive with the demand. 

With all this in mind, I ask again - how fast are you able to move? If you snooze you will probably lose.

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If I can provide more information about Carlsbad real estate and surrounding areas, or the housing market in general, or otherwise assist you in your homes search, please contact me by phone or text at (760) 840-1360 or email me at JDowler@remax.net.

All content copyright © 2009 Jeff Dowler Carlsbad Homes and Real Estate Tidbits