PROView - January 2009 - (Page 5) Buyers Abound When news outlets broadcast repeated stories about the national credit crisis and dismal sales figures it’s easy to get the idea that consumers have removed themselves from the idea of buying a home. By now it’s easy to get discouraged. But before we allow ourselves to subscribe to doom and gloom, let’s hear from some experts in the marketplace. Contrary to what most might expect, they’re actually upbeat about the condo market as they look ahead. “Interest is out there. Urgency isn’t.” Donna Fraleigh of Coldwell Banker Residential in St. Pete Beach specializes in the condo market and she mainly serves the downtown St. Petersburg area. “We’re in a market where customers may have the interest and often ability to buy but not always the urgency to enter the marketplace.” She describes would-be buyers as being in no rush to make a decision. “Buyers who may not need a roof over their heads immediately are waiting for bottom floor prices.” According to Fraleigh those buyers are closely monitoring when that might happen. She says that consumers today are more active in the home buying process than in years earlier, a shift she mainly considers the result of generational differences and access to information online. “Buyers are younger and they are very astute. They want to stay on top of the process, and play an active role.” She says today’s buyers do lots of research themselves, and ask very educated questions about how long a unit has been on the market and whether they should anticipate any future assessments by the HOA. They want to know all the details about a condo they’re interested in and prospective buyers make sure to stay on top of price levels and available inventory in their desired area. Fraleigh stresses how important it is for REALTORS® to provide consumers information about the marketplace. “The more well-informed consumers are, the more apt they will be to decide on a purchase.” While price certainly always carry weight in a purchase decision, other factors that don’t necessarily have to do with price are currently at play as well. Fraleigh points out that the primary reason consumers may take a wait and see approach is a fear that the downslide of home values will continue after they’ve bought their home. By finding an incredible deal, she says, that fear may go away as most consumers believe prices will stabilize in the long run. In their pursuit of a great deal, she says, many do not mind waiting for a short sales transaction to take its slow course through a lender’s loss mitigation department. “Most are looking for a true steal, and they don’t mind waiting several months to realize their goal.” PINELLAS REALTOR® ORGANIZATION What’s the Holdup? Perhaps the most difficult aspect of working with buyers and sellers today has to do with their perception of the marketplace. “The market we saw a few years ago was unsustainable,” says Rafal Wazio, REALTOR® with Sand Key Realty Sales and Rentals. “We all need to change our paradigm, and condition ourselves to a new reality.” That reality, he says, is that the market continues to adjust to more realistic price points. Many sellers appear to perceive the price levels of the recent boom years as the new benchmark for Pinellas County real estate prices. As a result, they are still not willing to lower their prices and instead maintain their homes listed at levels of past years. Buyers, on the other hand, look for rock bottom deals and expect prices to go much further down than they are currently offered. The result, according to Wazio, is a group of prospective buyers now waiting on the sideline and a glut of available condos. He predicts that as soon as the realization among buyers is that the bottom in fact is near, a wave is likely to spread through our marketplace before the hot deals disappear. Want proof? If you want to hear some good news you’ll enjoy the following examples of recent situations Wazio has observed in his particular service area. • Wazio assisted with the purchase of a 2,000 sq. ft. condo unit in North Clearwater Beach a couple of months ago. The sale price was about $1,100,000. The next available unit, featuring the same size and view but on a lower floor, is now offered at approximately $1,400,000. • A while ago, Wazio worked with a couple who was eyeing a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo with obstructed views in a Clearwater Beach condo tower. The price tag was $390,000 and the buyers waited for a lower price. All of a sudden the unit was sold. Three prospective buyers missed the opportunity, and the next available condo of equal size and view was priced at $549,000. Garges Purtee, a REALTOR® with The PURTEE Team of Keller Williams Realty in Seminole, adds that many buyers currently are looking at foreclosure and short sale properties. Meanwhile, bargain hunters stand the risk of losing out on great opportunities as they await January 2009 5
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