With the majority of active listings in Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for east metro Orlando being short sales / foreclosures / bank owned, the straight seller has been slowing fading in to the background and are easily overlooked by buyers. Why? This is due to the misconception that the best home values today are short sales / foreclosures / bank owned.
Due to popular mass media, there is the perception of short sales / foreclosures / bank owned being the only place a buyer can find “a good deal”. But remember, no seller - private, short sale, foreclosure or bank - is going to give a property away in any market. So really what is “a good deal”? A good deal boils down to “a good home for a good price”.
When a buyer chooses a home, the purchase price is the first consideration; however, a strong second is the condition of the home. 95% of buyers want a home that is “move in ready”. Buyers do not have the interest, money, time or energy to buy a home, move in and then complete one repair after another. Buyers want to buy their home, move in and enjoy and relax…we all have enough on our plates with our jobs and families.
Straight sellers have the most desired product - a well maintained, cared for, lived in home, which positions them for a timely sale. Straight sellers are selling by choice and are not pressured to sell due to financial dire straights.
Most Desired Product A straight seller offers a home that is well maintained, cared for and lived in. A leaky kitchen faucet is repaired; the grass is mowed; an ant trail along the baseboards is eliminated; ripped window screens are replaced. On the other hand, it is commonplace for short sales to lose the time, money and attention of the seller. Owners or tenants in various stages of packing and moving out; basic home repair and yard maintenance not attended to due to financial limitations.
It is commonplace for foreclosure homes to be intentionally damaged or neglected by the owners who lost their home to foreclosure. Many foreclosure/bank owned homes are long vacant with no maintenance for months and months. Far from move in ready, the average buyer is not prepared to buy this kind of home.
Timely A straight seller will respond to an offer within a few days max. On the other hand, a short sale can take weeks or months to receive a response to an offer because the seller’s lender approves an offer, not the seller. It is a rare buyer who will wait weeks or months for a response to an offer.
For an offer on a bank owned property, a buyer can expect a delay of ten days to three weeks due to numerous addendums required by the bank and dealing with a third party administrator who manages the inventory of bank owned homes for the bank.
A straight seller is financially stable in their property with no financial dilemmas weighing down their ability to sell in a timely manner such as missed mortgage payments, property liens, delinquent property taxes or delinquent HOA dues. These are all areas of major importance in the transfer of property and have been known to derail or delay a closing.
Moral of this story: straight sellers are good deals - a good home for a good price.
No comments:
Post a Comment