House buying question

[supton]

If you have specific requirements for a house, is it better to wait until the right one shows up on the market; or is it better to put one's house onto the market and then rent until the right one comes along? I don't have crazy needs but casual looking on zillow shows a small market for what I want, and moving long distances is not an option.

I'm guessing I could list my house high (well, the real estate person could), because I can afford to turn down offers until I find the right house--then drop price once I find something and need this one to move.

Just weighing my options. We've wanted to move for the last few years, but need to establish a plan before we can move forward (no pun intended).

 

[Leo99]

Depends on how quickly you think your house will sell.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: Leo99
Depends on how quickly you think your house will sell.


I don't think it'll go fast, based upon what I've seen of the area. I could price it low and make it move; or price it at what the appraisal is, and watch it sit. It's a buyer's market around here I think. And the property is a bad combination (lots of land with road frontage, small house, near the lake but not on it).

 

[Wolf359]

It's a lot harder to move up these days than in the past. In the old days you could get a bridge loan, but now they just see if you can afford 2 mortgages. If you can't then you can't buy a house and then sell yours. Most of the time the standard advice is to sell your home first, then look for something to buy. But before you do that, you have to see if there are houses that are close to what you want. For instance if all the houses you want are 300k and you can only afford 200k, then there's no point selling your house.

 

[tgrudzin]

"I'm guessing I could list my house high (well, the real estate person could), because I can afford to turn down offers until I find the right house--then drop price once I find something and need this one to move.

Just weighing my options. We've wanted to move for the last few years, but need to establish a plan before we can move forward (no pun intended)."

Almost going through this. It might vary by region, but in Chicagoland, IL the restate agents say it doesn't look good for a house to be on the market for a long period and then a price reduction. Put on the buyer shoes for awhile and what do you think when you see a house on the market for a long period and then it's reduced. I think it can be reduced again, or there is something wrong with the house.

 

[SatinSilver]

Sell your house, live with relatives and build a new one. Time to you know what or get off the pot.

 

[Oregoonian]

Why list the house "high"....if it won't sell. Listing high, is never a good marketing move. It keeps people away who could afford the home if the home was listed close to the true selling price.

I would suggest waiting until you find the home you want...and then immediatly list the home your in. Make the purchase of the home contingent upon the sale of yours. This would seave $$$ (rent) and effort (moving twice).

Fred,
Retired Real Estate Agent

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Oregoonian
Why list the house "high"....if it won't sell. Listing high, is never a good marketing move. It keeps people away who could afford the home if the home was listed close to the true selling price.

I would suggest waiting until you find the home you want...and then immediatly list the home your in. Make the purchase of the home contingent upon the sale of yours. This would seave $$$ (rent) and effort (moving twice).

Fred,
Retired Real Estate Agent


That use to be a standard move back in the old days, but now no one wants to accept an offer that's contingent on the sale of a house. Even if they do, they usually put in a kick out clause which basically requires you to remove your contingency or withdraw from the sale if they get a better offer.

And that's true about listing a house, the trick is to price it just right so it sells in a week. If it sits too long, people start to wonder what's wrong with it and will offer prices below asking. When it just hits the market, you're more likely to get asking or higher. That doesn't happen when it sits for a while. Also when you price it too high, the agent might not want the listing. After all, they don't get paid if it doesn't sell so they're not collecting listings, they're going to want to price it to sell.

 

[Brybo86]

Well if you currently own and want to buy something else while selling current house the stars kind of have to align.
You would place what is called a "contingent" offer on the new house. "Contingent" on you selling your current house in order to buy the new one.
Depending on the house and market you are in a seller would rather have a cash buyer, or renter, rather than a contingent offer.

 

[gman2304]

After living in my first house for 5 years, I sold it and rented for 6 months before buying my second house. The money I made off the first house helped make a larger down payment on the second. It was a leap of faith and I was young, but it worked well for me then. This was in 1976 and my interest rate was around 9%, which was fairly low at the time. In 1981 the average 30 year mortgage was around 16%....OUCH!

 

[supton]

Closest relatives are a few hundred miles... but friends might put us up. Would be nice to build "exactly" what we want.

Need to put a few thousand into repairs first, into this house. Nothing major, but it all looks bad (need to refinish the floor, do new carpets, fix all ceilings due to drywall cracking, exterior trim board). That and we're filled to the gills with stuff, which has to go into storage, for both selling and to do the aforementioned repairs.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: Oregoonian
Why list the house "high"....if it won't sell. Listing high, is never a good marketing move. It keeps people away who could afford the home if the home was listed close to the true selling price.


I'm seeing stuff that has been on Zillow for a year plus. I'd say 100 days is the rough average of what is listed.

 

[maverickfhs]

Originally Posted By: Oregoonian
Why list the house "high"....if it won't sell. Listing high, is never a good marketing move. It keeps people away who could afford the home if the home was listed close to the true selling price.

I would suggest waiting until you find the home you want...and then immediatly list the home your in. Make the purchase of the home contingent upon the sale of yours. This would seave $$$ (rent) and effort (moving twice).

Fred,
Retired Real Estate Agent


^This, never list the house for too much. Compare it against the comps and then go from there. Usually buyers won't even put any offers if it's listed 25-30k more than the neighborhood, unless you have too many 'nice' upgrades.

Plus, depends on the sub-division or neighborhood, if it's a desired one or??

Good luck

 

[supton]

It's actually a tough one to price. We spoke to an agent last year, and she had problems finding comparable houses. It's a starter home but in a good location, with too much land boosting its property value.

[I actually like the property, it's the house that is the problem. For my needs it'd need to be torn down and restarted, from the ground up--footprint too small.]

Anyhow, spoke with the wife, and she wants us to move forward.

 

[Mr Nice]

Maybe sell it and live temporarily in an 'Extended Stay' hotel until you purchase next house ?

 

[SatinSilver]

Can you build towards the back of the lot then have the house torn down after the new one is built? I've seen this done before and not on large parcels either. The new house was right behind the old one.

 

[ecotourist]

Originally Posted By: supton
I actually like the property, it's the house that is the problem. For my needs it'd need to be torn down and restarted, from the ground up--footprint too small.

Why not build the house you want where you would want it on your property and then tear down the old one. Then you have a place to live until your new house is ready. Or have an architect look at what you have with a view to expanding it.

If you want to sell a house you need to price it right. It you price it too high it will sit and before long everyone who is interested watches to see how low you're going to go. But too low isn't good either in a weak market.

 

[Andrew1972]

On land it only seems like first two acres matter a lot in value. After that the valuation is considerably lower per acre unless it can easily get subdivided.

Sell first and rent. I sold before housing crash and had the buying home fall thru. I rented for 8 months came back to owners with lower offer they bit.

 

[supton]

I don't really want to reuse the house. It is nice as it is, but I think an addition would not work well.

Building on my lot... hmm. I've never really thought of that. It is an idea to mull over, thank you.

 

[Studebaker]

Have a professional appraise your home and price it slightly below appraisal. Appraiser, not a Realtor.
Have a professional home inspection done, and fix things on the list.
Offer a home warranty.
When it sells, rent.