Sellers often have a hard time pricing their properties. The emotion of letting a home be sold is a challenge even in the best of times, and in a sustained drop in prices it becomes very difficult.
At the same time buyers of property can often have trouble finding reasonable financing. Also there are so many properties on the market that making a decision becomes hard.
Buyers often come to the market expecting a deal, and a number of sellers who have seen their house values drop well off the record highs believe that they are already giving buyers a tremendous deal.
Many times this leads to a clash of realities with the buyers and sellers often far apart on prices. The final price ends up being a decision for a buyer of how much they love a house.
The seller on the other hand has to decide if they are willing to let their home go for less than they expected.
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In the last few months, I have seen properties sell anywhere between the asking price and 30% off.
The price of any given property just depends on finding an amount where the buyer and seller can come to an agreement.
That is how prices get set.
Make no mistake homes are selling, the best ones are not waiting unnoticed. Usually the ones selling the quickest are the most aggressively priced ones. Often there is competition for those properties while over priced ones have a hard even getting a showing.
Beyond that it helps if the property is up to date, well cared for, and easy to show.
Some of the following market characteristics are unique to Carteret County.
We have few people moving here for any other reason than personal choice.
That along with a strong rental market and a substantial number of retired people provides some stability to our market which is missing in many markets even in NC.
Even here we have seen a limited number of foreclosures in the last few months. They have pressured prices.
Fortunately those foreclosures have been tempered by the fact that we have started to see more buyers from outside the area.
The total number of listings has stopped growing and actually declined from record highs recently.
Fewer people are listing their properties. Many people who have their homes listed are letting the listings expire.
This news has to be tempered with the continuing slowness in sales. Units sales of single family residential homes in Carteret County have dropped around 11% through the middle of September 09 compared to the same period last year.
The average price of a home in the same period has declined 8%.
In spite of this, it does not appear that pricing is biggest issue facing the home market. We have competitively priced homes in the area, but there are few buyers actually able to move to the area.
Potential buyers wanting to move to Carteret County outnumber real buyers at least three to one. Many potential buyers are unable to sell their home or cannot find the type of job that they need to make a sensible move.
This buyer gridlock is compounded by a number banks demanding that homes be sold before a second home is purchased.
What are the recommendations for buyers and sellers as of the middle of September 2009?
The market is not going to quickly turn around, and likely it will take you longer than expected to sell your property. Given the large number of days on market before selling, you might as well get started.
Selling your property in this market requires that you pay special attention to prices of similar homes that have sold and the condition of your home. In addition buyers are more educated about home prices than ever. They can also afford to be picky.
Considering that Carteret County’s most recent tax evaluation was done in 2005, the time of peak prices, and that prices have declined since then, you should not be surprised to find out most buyers will start with an offer well under your tax value.
Selling in this market requires patience, tolerance, and willingness to accept a realistic price for your home or land. This is not a market for those whose feelings will be hurt if they get a low price offer.
Many exceptional buys are already gone. The idea that the best buys will be still there for those who wait the longest does not often play out in the real estate market.
Properties continue to sell, and it should be fairly obvious that the best deals will be bought first.
Taking the time to look now, even if you purchase is several months out, will allow you to make a much more intelligent purchase.
Trying to play the timing game with a complex market like real estate is almost impossible.
The best you can do is buy when you need to and sell when you have to while allowing that to be tempered with as much local knowledge as possible.
I plan to regularly update my analysis and recommendations on the Carteret County real estate market.
While my comments are no substitute for your personal investigation, if you read this newsletter and scan through the properties that have sold using the link on my website, you will have a pretty good idea of what is happening.