The other evening I was driving home when I heard an analyst was being interviewed on a local news station about the market. Her comment was that it is a buyer's market. Being that it was a local station, although she worked for a locally based but national magazine, one could only assume that she was talking about the local market. Thinking it through, she was probably looking at things from a national level. Either way, both she and the station were doing a disservice to their listeners here in the D.C. area which has the most vibrant job and real estate market in the nation right now. There may be a few deals out there, and both prices and interest rates are pretty darn low, but the nicer homes are not languishing on the market for very long. Inventory is tight, and the really nice homes that are regular sales are even tighter. Two of my clients recently have been in situations where there were multiple offers and both homes sold in just a few days. Neither were willing to offer the asking price and that is what they needed to do, if not more, to secure the property
Needless to say, many home buyers have been brainwashed by the financial media into thinking that a low ball offer will be accepted for an updated, move in home in a prime location. In the Washington core that is unlikely. I cannot speak so much for the "way, way out" suburbs but relatively "close in" will require a strong solid offer.
The point is that you should not be misled by what you hear on the radio, tv, or read in the newspaper (or online) about the real estate market. Real Estate is local. It is even hyper-local meaning there are areas within communities that are very hot and others not so hot. That is why you need a qualified real estate agent, like myself, to help you determine what you should pay for a property. I close now with a link from marketwatch concerning low ball offers.
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