Homequitybuilder

Let me preface this article by saying that I’ve been in the real estate and mortgage field for a number of years.  That said, I do not have a crystal ball, and I’m sure there will be a few that disagree with my premise here.  Notwithstanding, if you’re thinking of selling or trying to sell your house-  get it done in the next 3-4 months, or else !

If you’re considering selling your home and you think that the market and seller’s market will be better 6 months from now, or 12 months from now- think again.   Take my advice that it will be even harder to sell 6 months from now for most of the country (note this posting is for the USA; as I do have some UK housing posts also in my Blog).

Overall, mortgage rates will be HIGHER 6 months from now.  With rates higher, buyers will be able to afford less house, and that always will bring house prices down.  Even compared to our current market.  Today’s average 30 year fixed mortgage rate is around 6.60%.  Over the past 10 years, the average is just north of 7%, and over the past 30 years it is around 8.5%.  Those are just general statistics, and have nothing to do with the current “subprime” credit crunch, general wholesale mortgage issues, as well as Freddie Mac just announcing a large quarterly loss.  Not to mention that many foreign countries and investors are cutting their US mortgage securities purchases because the US dollar has been falling in value.  All told, I wouldn’t be surprised if the average mortgage rate is around 7.75% in 12 months.  That is not a welcome sign for home sellers.

Foreclosures on the rise-  It’s been widely publicized that national foreclosure rates are their highest in at least 12-14 years.  Some stats show it the highest since records were kept on it.  2008 will likely be another record foreclosure year, due to resetting teaser ARM rates and mortgage payment shock for many homeowners.  The more foreclosed properties on the market will have a tendency to push general home prices down.

Also, there is the seasonal aspect of home sales.  Especially in this (bad) seller’s market, everyone and their mothers are waiting until the Spring of 2008 to put their house on the market.  I can guarantee that there will be a huge glut of new listings on the market come April and May.  I know December is tough, but I would put my house on the market tomorrow and hope for a February sale/closing if I had to.  Remember that almost half of the country really isn’t affected by the negatives of moving in the winter (like us here in the Northeast, and elsewhere).

OK- so how do I sell me house quickly?  It’s been on the market already for 100 days with no offers.  No easy answers here, but here are a few ideas-

1. Firesale-  Come up with a worst case scenario number, and reduce your asking price to that figure.  If you’re already at that point, you still might have to reduce to sell it in the next couple months.  If you’re stubborn and you wait 6-9 months, you’ll end up worse off.

2. Offer an extra bonus commission to a buyer’s RE agent to bring in a buyer under contract.  Typical co-broke for a buyer’s agent is between 2% and 2 1/2%.  Raise it 1% for a month or 2 and you’ll notice some more calls and foot traffic being brought in to your home.  The realtors are looking to make any extra money that they can.

3. With the tightness in today’s subprime type market, you may have to consider some alternates to bring in the largest buyer pools that you can.  One unique option is via a listing/advertising service called www.cheaphousepayments.com .  It’s another means of trying to sell the “value” of your home versus the rest on the market in your area.  Check out the website and you’ll see what it’s about.  There is a fee, but it may be worth it instead of lowering your list price- again.

4.  Other than, trust a good realtor and do the smart and basic things to make your home look as good as it can look, especially from the street curb.  That seems simple, but now its more important than ever.  Maybe involve a home stager, or hopefully your realtor can give you some good practical advice.

In conclusion, times are tough, but in my view they’ll just get tougher.  Unless you want wait 18 months or so, get brave and do what you have to do SOON to make the sale!  Good luck,

KLME, LLC

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 22nd, 2007 at 1:55 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.