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Shoot yourself in the foot?

By
Real Estate Agent with First Call Realtors, LLC

It's human nature to want the "best deal", the bargain of a lifetime!  This is especially true in our competitive society.   In our furry to get this bargain, we humans often put on the "blinders" and focus on the tree at the expense of the forest.  When buying a home in this buyers market, we've "gotta have that super deal!"  "Wait for the bottom", as if we could really know where the bottom is until after it has past, and then buy it at a terrific price before it's gone!  But too often, that is not enough and we end up shooting ourselves in the foot.

Let's take a quick look at the forest.  Home values are at their lowest in years and we've finally decided it's time to buy.  Some homes are listed at over 50% of what their original value was only a year ago. We find just the home we've dreamed of. Our Realtor® checks the market and the home we have chosen is priced right compared to others in the area. It's a super deal! It's time to buy.  Here's where we tend to injure our foot. 

We're only human and the fury for the best deal kicks in.  Suddenly the "super deal" is not quite enough.  This just might not be the best deal yet and we're told "everything is negotiable" so we decide to squeeze out a little more to get that absolute best deal and offer even less than the low price asked for our dream home.  Sellers are often anxious and even stressed, so our offer is reluctantly accepted.  Now we've got a "super great deal", right!  Well, our foot may be getting a little sore now.   

After a short time we realize that our completed sale has just driven down the home values once again in our neighborhood and the equity in our new home tumbled along with it.  Another new buyer down the street does the same as we did and home prices in the neighborhood drop even lower.  Suddenly our home is over valued for the neighborhood.  We're "upside down".  The cycle continues.  The forest is diseased.  Where will it end ... the bottom?

Isn't it time to consider the forest when we buy a home.  Sure, consider your needs and get a good deal, but what is the impact of your deal on your future, your neighbor's future, the community and even the economy.  Let's take responsibility for our impact on the forest and not shoot ourselves in the foot.

 

 

Posted by

Edd Van Damme, CRS, ABR
www.twotter.com/PHXHomeBuyers www.facebook.com/PHXHomeBuyers www.youtube.com/phxhomebuyers

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