Hi everybody. This is Doug Buenz with the 680 Homes Group at Venture Sotheby’s International Realty, and
680homes.com. Welcome to the latest episode of
Inside Real Estate. Today my topic is
Winners in a Softening Market
Everybody knows the market has started to soften, so I thought it would be useful to take a look at who benefits from this type of market.
My winners are, number one, realistic sellers. If you are a seller, and you are motivated to sell your home, and you are realistic about pricing it, you can position it to look like a compelling offering in the marketplace, versus all the other listings that might be over-priced. If you are willing to aggressively price your property, you would be a winner in this market.
The second group that benefits from a softening market are low down payment buyers. Everyone remembers the height of the market when people got five, seven, ten, twelve offers on their listings. Low down payment buyers in that type of market have very little chance of securing a home. However, in a softening market, where market times are elongated, they have an excellent chance of procuring a property, because there is no competition. It is a great time for low down payment buyers to enter the market right now.
The third group of buyers that benefits from the current market slowdown would be contingent buyers. Again, when sellers get five, seven, ten, twelve offers on their property, they are never going to consider a contingent offer. However, when the property stays on the market for a long period time, contingent buyers become a viable option for many sellers. If you are a contingent buyer, who needs to sell their property in order to secure the other property, it is a great time to consider doing that. The onus will be on you to prove to the seller that you can get your home sold, but if you can, it is a great opportunity for you.
The next group of people who benefit from a slower market condition are cash buyers. Why do I say that? Because there are some sellers who are hyper-motivated, who need to get their home sold, and they are not having any success. If you are a cash buyer, and you can come in and solve the seller’s problem, especially problems related to timing, where the seller needs it sold quick, you can gain an incredible amount of equity right out of the gate in this type of market condition.
The next groupof buyers who would benefit from a softening market is buyers willing to do some work to a property, willing to take a property that is out of date, tired cosmetically, unattractive, and buy the property and fix it up. Bring it up to today’s standards. You can find some excellent values out there, because now that the market has softened, there are a lot of choices. Buyers who are willing to do some cosmetic remodeling will find this a pretty good market to do that.
The last groups of winners in a softening market are sellers who have homes that are absolute turn key state of the art. Everyone knows modern is hot, so if you have a home that you have remodeled with modern décor and finishes, it is going to get a lot of attention in the market, even if it is softer.
Thanks for watching. Be sure to like this video, and share it with friends, or people you think might be interested. We would really appreciate it. Also, do you have a real estate question you would like us to address? Just simply type it in the comments below, and we will address it on a future issue. If we can help you, or anyone you know with their real estate needs, please give us a call at 925-785-7777, or visit our website at
680homes.com.