If selling your house through a REALTOR you will probably have been told never to get into conversation with buyers or Agents viewing your home, and refer ALL questions to your Realtor.  

If you are typical you will ignore this advice the 1st time someone asks a simple question such as “where are you moving to”. Where’s the harm in telling this friendly guy you just got notice that your 5 year adjustable mortgage is going up to 6.75%,  and since you got laid off 9 months ago and your unemployment benefits are coming to an end  you won’t be able to pay that for much longer. In other words you’re pretty desperate and it’s only going to get worse.

Is it likely that this friendly fellow is going to feel sorry for you and offer you his top price? Or is it more likely he smells blood in the water and is going to give you a low ball take it or leave it bid? 

And just what benefit did you get from the conversation that made it worth ignoring the good advice you Realtor had given you?

Neither a potential buyer or buyers agent can tell you anything your advantage, but by talking to them you can give a considerable amount of useful information away.

AND:

Allways remember that Social Media web sites are not designed to keep your conversations and opinions private. Quite the opposite.

1. Most Realtors think this is a slow time and choose to take more time off. RESULT; less competition.

2. There are fewer Listings and fewer Buyers, but those who are active  are serious. RESULT; more productive use of time.

But this year things are very different. There will still be fewer Agents working and fewer Buyers looking, BUT there will be many more Listings to choose from.

WHY? Because we will still have all the normal Sellers who are serious, PLUS a large number of REO Properties which are not affected by the holidays. Banks know that each day they own a property costs them a lot of money so they will be putting them on the market as soon as they can regardless of the time of year.

So why be a Buyer now? Because you will have less competition but more properties to choose from. (Not to mention the extended and improved Tax Credit Program).

We have an much higher than normal number of Short Sales and REO properties. While for numerous reasons short sales are just sitting out there, the REO properties are flying off the market as quick as they arrive, and in most cases with multiple offers.

For a great summary on this topic check out Scott Schang’s blog at http://www.californiateachersandemployeeshomeloanprograms.com/buying-homes-in-a-bidding-war-understanding-competitive-markets/