THE ART OF THE DEAL:

TIPS FROM ANDY RAFFLE

Buying Your Home In A Buyers Market

Different markets require different strategies both for Sellers and Buyers of Real Estate.  Shedding the ideas of the past and embracing current, proven strategies will allow you to stand out from the crowd and buy the best home for the least price.

Don't Try To Time The Market:  When home prices are lower, ir can be very tempting for potential Buyer's to wait as long as possible, waiting for the perfect opportunity to buy the home of their choice.  This strategy often proves to be fruitless as; by the time we recognize the bottom of the market, it has already passed.  When we find a home that meets your criteria and it is priced well, it is time ot make an offer.  The lesson is that, even in a Buyer's market, well priced homes will sell.

Take Your Time...To A Degree:  Each market is unique but it is without question that less homes are selling in the Bucks County Market this year.  Buyer's have the ability to be diligent and consider carefully before making an offer but, procrastination will cause the home you want to be bought by somebody else.  Once again, keep in mind that, even in a Buyer's market, well priced homes will sell.

Don't Expect To Steal A Home:  With the amount of information available to Buyer's and Seller's today, it is very unusual for homes to sell at significant discount or premium to the value of the property.  Just as it is important for Sellers to price homes realistically, it is important for Buyer's to understand that their offers must have some relationship to the VALUE of the home.

Know The Value Of What You're Trying To Buy:  Related to the above suggestion, know what a home is worth BEFORE making an offer.  Too often I hear Buyer's who want to make an offer that is 10% below the asking price, even though the home is priced at either 20% above it's value or 5% above it's value.  Asking price is no indication of anything other than a Selelr's desire for a certain amount.  if a home is WORTH $300,000 and it is listed at $350,000, it does not help you to offer 10% below listed price ($315,000), because you're still paying too much.  If the same home is listed for $290,000 and worth $300,000, making an even lower offer may preclude you from buying a well priced home.  Negotiate hard but, be realistic.

Negotiate The Options:  Sometimes it makes sense to pay the Seller what they're asking for and do your negotiations on some other items.  such as new carpets, renovating a kitchen or bathroom or some other item that may not be indicated as part of the listed home but, that you'd like to have done.  Remember, we're talking about a Buyer's market and you can certainly negotiate strongly.

I hope oyu found this and some of my other tips helpful.  If you have any questions or if I can help in any way, please contact me.  I'm available to help you Buy or Sell in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and my referral network allows me to help you move ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.   Please explore my fully interactive Real Estate website, where you can search thousands of properties, read my real estate articles, my Bucks County Blog, sign up for my email newsletter  and find other useful information.

Andy Raffle

www.AskAndyRaffle.com

Coldwell Banker Hearthside. Realtors

Yardley, PA   215.493.9080