FLORENCE OREGON MARKET CONDITIONS

Hi everybody, This market is so crazy. It was so slow that nothing was happening except the cheapest of bank owned (or close to it) homes have been selling. We have even been seeing some land sales. The bare land in the new subdivision, The Heceta Reserve, has been selling for as low as $35,000. OMG!! Is right. The homes in there have to be custom built with colored rocks, bricks, and special materials to make the homes more upscale. These homes have been listed for $400,000 and up. It is kind of strange because this subdivision doesn't have a view of the ocean, or water frontage except for the seasonal lake which most of the time doesn't amount to much more than wet lands. Yeah, they have a nice little playground, underground utilities are in but the city services have not reached that point yet so a buyer would have to put in a septic. Thanks to Heceta Water District a buyer can get a water meter for approx. $3,070.00. It may sound like a lot of money for a meter but it is much cheaper, easier and better water than a well.
So, we have an up and down market here in Florence. About a month ago I had so many inquiries that I couldn't keep up with them. Now I am fighting to keep my remaining two deals in escrow. One already died. These are cash deals. What's up with that? If a buyer comes along with cash, well, all I can say is be thankful. Take it and run. Of course the banks don't look at it that way. They are so close to doing real estate transactions themselves that it isn't even funny.
I have been working on a short sale for about 6 weeks or so and today the rep. at the bank tells me that it usually takes about 2 months for a short sale to go through, if it does go through. There are so many steps and most of the different people who handle each department don't even know what the other department is doing. Typical I guess. Most large corporations just don't have very good communication within the company. Anyway, I am still working on that and trying like crazy to hold it together.
I have great hopes for the future. I am really convinced that it is going to become overwhelming when the banks start giving loans again. However, I did read the other day that they are going to get stricter on the FHA loans. Well! I didn't know that was possible. How can FHA get stricter? It is so hard to sell an existing home with FHA, VA, Reverse Mortgage, and many other types that require the same appraisals and tests. If there is anything at all wrong with the home it has to be fixed before a loan can be funded. Generally this is referring to every home that is not brand new. Even some of them have issues.
I know that all of this is beyond my control and so I give it up to Jesus. May God guide us all in the ways of his will and help us to survive these real estate conditions. May your buyers and sellers all be sensible and understanding of this market and be reasonable in their deals. In Jesus name, Amen.