We hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend with family and friends. Philip and I enjoyed having “one” day off from showing property (not by our choice). Never the less, a little well deserved “R & R” never hurts anyone and spending time with loved ones is always uplifting.
Showings have progressively slowed down since we are coming upon the dreaded summer months. However, we have noticed that real Buyers are out there in the market place, but as suspected, they are all out on a “Feeding Frenzy”. Today’s Buyers are looking for two main factors when making their purchasing decision: “Price” and “Appearance”.
- Price
: Price is #1, if not EVERYTHING!!! Buyers are savvy to the current state of the market, informed on what has sold in the area, and what things are really worth these days. Buyers realize it is absolutely a “Buyers Market” and come to showings with all this documentation in hand. People, I am not kidding you, Buyers have repeatedly thrust in our faces articles from local and national news sources to prove their argument that everyone in Florida who has their house on the market lives in “La La Land”. Last time I checked… our real estate licenses did not cover selling property in any such place… is that even in Florida??? But according to today’s Buyers, that’s exactly where all currently listed properties with unrealistic “List Prices” are located…”La La Land”.
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Appearance: In today’s market, how your home presents itself is a major factor to potential Buyers. I’m sorry to say it folks, but its a
serious “Beauty Contest” out there. With an increase in inventory and the abundance of competition with so many similar homes/models available, your home MUST stand out to make a lasting impression on the “deal seeking” Buyers. They are looking for properties that are not only the greatest financial deal, but best looking with the least amount to “undo” in the home. I know we all get attached to our own “personal style”, and think everyone is going to “love” what we’ve done. Sometimes we get caught up on how much we spent in upgrades based on our own personal taste… but the truth is “the more personalized your home is, the longer you can anticipate it being on the market”. Buyers react the most favorably to listings that are neutral in palette, with clean/well organized spaces, and if your residence happens to look like the sunny “Florida” vacation home they are dreaming of …well then you are one of the lucky ones… you have an advantage.
Seems simple enough…right? Sometimes the best answer is the most obvious one. We know that “Location, Location, Location” is the most important factor in real estate. Well, if the potential Buyer has decided on
Mizner
Country Club as their place for their future home… there’s your location factor! The good thing is that we all have that one key element going for us, and if you add “Price” and “Appearance” into the formula… There’s your recipe for getting one step closer to having your property sold!
These days Buyer’s are looking to make a deal and feel like they’ve made a “wise decision”. Volatile factors in the economy and real estate market today show that home prices continue to decline, with no foreseen end in sight. So our best advice is… “The offer you receive today, is going to be the best offer you’ll get…until who knows when???
Check back on June 1st for our latest article titled “May 2008 – Year To Date Sales”.
Please View Our Website:
www.luxuryresortportfolio.com and see why we are “The Definitive Source for Luxury Real Estate In South Florida”
All information is derived from the Palm Beach County Property Appraisers website and the MLS.