Home Buying in Sacramento's Tight Real Estate Market and Tips to Win that Offer

Some home buyers and their buyer's agents have not figured out that the entry-level housing market in Sacramento is a seller's market, not a buyer's market. It's a seller's market because inventory -- the number of homes for sale -- has fallen and the number of buyers has increased. Two years ago, we had 14 months of inventory, meaning it would take 14 months to sell every home that is for sale. Now, we have 2 months of inventory. We had 10,454 homes for sale in September of 2007 in Sacramento County. September of 2009 had 3,243.

As a result, some home buyers are writing offer after offer and getting rejected. Part of the reason that these buyers are unable to buy a home in Sacramento is because they are writing offers on the wrong properties. I hate to say this, but the real estate market in Sacramento is not like a Macy's department store. Buyers can not leisurely stroll among the aisles and select merchandise that suits one's fancy. There is no time to casually drape garments over one's arm and ask to be shown the dressing room.

The Sacramento market is like a spring lingerie sale at Victoria's Secret. This is when underwear is dumped on a table at the front door and customers are grabbing, tugging and pulling on the same pair of panties like crazed maniacs, leaving pawed-through scraps for the rest of us. By the time you fight your way to the table, the only pieces left are large-sized, purple-and-pink-flowered panties. And the waistbands are torn.

Here is how I am getting my Sacramento home buyers into escrow:

• Before showing property, I check with the listing agents. I ask how many offers the agent has received and whether there is anything I should know about the property or the sellers that is not noted in MLS. I'm looking for seller motivation. I know that some other agents don't do this because every day I receive a report on my listings. This report shows who has accessed the lockboxes on my Sacramento short sale listings, and many of those listings are active short contingents, meaning we are in escrow. Those agents don't check with me beforehand.
• I look at the tax records to determine how long the seller has owned the property and the likelihood that a lower offer could throw that transaction into short sale status.
• I ask listing agents to delay presentation of an offer until my buyer has a chance to view the property. It's better for the agent's seller if the seller has the opportunity to compare 2 offers.
• I often eliminate those listings that are priced artificially low with few days on market for my FHA and VA buyers, because I know that competition will be fierce and those buyers are likely to lose out to a cash buyer. Instead, I look for overpriced listings with 30 to 60 days or more on market. I look for that diamond in the rough that nobody else can see.
  
• I write very clean offers, including points specified by the listing agent. I present those offers from a position of strength, highlighting why my buyer's offer should be accepted over another's; moreover, I make the listing agent's job easy. When the listing agent isn't faced with extra work and knows the buyer is well qualified and solid, that alone speaks volumes.

If you're looking for homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, East Sacramento, Midtown, South Land Park, or any of the core areas of Sacramento, give me a ring at 916 233 6759. I'd love to help you with your home buying needs in Sacramento.