What makes a Buyer's Market?

We hear it all the time, we probably tell it to our clients all the time.  It's a buyer's market or it's a seller's market.  What does it really mean?

In simple terms, a buyers market is when there are many more homes for sale than qualified buyers.  It means that buyers have more homes to choose from; that those who utilize a good agent will generally have an edge in negotiations; and that they may be able to get into a house or neighborhood that may have been out of their reach in a strong seller's market.

When buyers have no house to sell, the advantage can be all theirs.  When a house is involved, they are subject to the same tough sell conditions as the sellers of the house they wish to buy.  

It is important to remember this, be it a buyer's market or seller's market, when you have to sell before you can buy, the advantage is all relative.  Just as your windfall from your sale in a seller's market probably will have to be spent when you turn around and buy; in a buyer's market the savings on your new house may be eaten up by the concessions you had to make to sell.

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