Foreclosures and Fixer-Uppers
Looking for a good deal and don't mind doing a little work for it? You may be interested in buying a "fixer-upper" to save money. There are more fixers for sale than in other periods because of the prevalence of foreclosures in the Pasadena area. When foreclosures happen, it means the homeowners are in serious financial trouble, which usually leads to not making repairs or doing necessary maintenance to save money. On top of the financial difficulties, the homeowners expect that the house will be taken away from them, and they are not happy about that. Homeowners in foreclosure may even damage the house out of resentment toward the lender who is foreclosing on them. And once the foreclosure process is complete and the homeowner is evicted, the house can sit vacant for months while the bank tries to sell it. And vacant homes tend to deteriorate. Thus there are so many fixer-uppers for sale because of foreclosure.
Slow Sales Lead to Vacant Homes
Another source of fixer-uppers in Pasadena, CA is the fact that many people cannot sell their homes before they need to move out of the area. The average days on market (DOM) for Pasadena homes is now over 120, up from under 80 days just 1 year ago, according to Altos Research. And many homes that are listed aren't selling before the listing agreement with their listing agent expires. This year there's been 26% more expireds in Pasadena when compared with the same period last year (281 vs. 223). The result of this is that people just can't sell homes in the timetable they need to before they move. And some of these houses just sit vacant, unsold and unrented. Again, vacant homes tend to deteriorate. But their loss can be your gain.
What To Do Before You Buy a Fixer
Just like you should get a mechanic to take a look at a used car before you buy it, you should get a reliable contractor to inspect the property before you buy it. He can give you a good estimate on what the cost will be to repair it. Then you can figure that amount into your calculations, and determine whether the house is still a good investment including the rehab costs. We can recommend reputable contractors if you don't have one.
If you're interested in perusing the fixers for sale in Pasadena or nearby areas, signup for our Fixer Hot List. We'll do the search for you and send it to your inbox. It's as easy to use as an E-card. And you'll get updates so you can be the first to view the new properties as soon as they go up for sale.
You can also search for yourself for Pasadena real estate or any areas in Southern California. Contact us if we can serve your real estate needs in any way.
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