We Need To Go On A Diet

I just heard David give the best analogy to describe our market:

"Imagine I gained 200 pounds, can you picture how big my pants would have to be? Now imagine I lost all that weight really fast, but I still had to wear the same pants. I'd be little but my pants would be huge, THEY WOULDN'T FIT!

That's what our market is like; a thin pool of motivated buyers swimming around in an ocean of homes. We have to tailor down our oversized inventory to fit our thin buyer pool."

Ok folks, 2008 was a doozey and unless we want to prolong the pain past 2009, we need sellers to get realistic about fair market value and we need buyers to come to the table with serious, well-written offers.

We still have some muck to wade through (read: short sales and foreclosures), but all signs point to increased units sold in the latter half of 2009, which will help increase competition by tailoring down our inventory.

If the vibes and changes that come down from capitol hill boost consumer confidence, all sales fields will feel the love.

For anyone out there thinking about putting an offer in on a short sale:
I've noticed banks drawing a line when it comes to how low they will go and the "10% rule" doesn't cut it anymore. Unless you are right on, or darn close to, asking price (assuming it's a well-priced home), expect to see a counter from the bank at or above asking price. If they keep this up and more buyers agree to these terms, you will see a price floor form fast.

Happy New Year!

We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and we wish you the best for 2009.

Stay tuned for a look back on 2008 and what to expect over this next year.