Everyone keeps asking me, 'Martin - who's buying homes in Ann Arbor right now?'. After getting asked this a couple of times, especially since the beginning of the current financial crisis, I decided to look into this further.
I went back two months to analyze where our buyers came from. The Bouma Group sold homes to 18 buyers in September and October of 2008. The results are interesting, and much different from the perceptions that I had.
First Time Buyers 8 Sales 44%
Relocation Buyers 3 Sales 17%
Move up Buyers 2 Sales 11%
Second-Home Buyers 2 Sales 11%
Rentals 2 Sales 11%
Investment Buyers 1 Sale 6.5%
The most interesting statistic is the number of first time home buyers. Despite the fact that most 100% loan programs and seller down payment assistant loans are now gone, almost half of the buyers are first time buyers. That's a very good sign as it tells me that first time home buyers, who are generally younger buyers, are confident that a home purchase is still a sound economic decision. The second-home buyer is also a good trend. Many of these buyers are people that graduated from the University of Michigan, and as they approach retirement years, want a residence in Ann Arbor because of all the amenities Ann Arbor has to offer, like excellent restaurants, theater, sports events, world class medical facilities, and a 25 minute drive from Detroit Metropolitan Airport - a world class international airport. Many of them are also cash buyers.
Great deals are to be found everywhere! If you are working with an Ann Arbor Realtor who has expert knowledge of the local real estate market and is a strong negotiator, you can certainily take advantage of today's challenging real estate market. Contrary to what many are thinking, there are lots of buyers taking advantage of the current market to purchase a Washtenaw County home. Homes that are priced well, show well, and have a good location are the ones that are selling.
To stay updated on the current Washtenaw County real estate market conditions, be sure to check my website regularily.
Until next time-
Martin
We have all heard of Digg, delicious and many other social bookmarking websites but another lesser known site 
I discovered recently is called Mixx.com. Like its sister sites, Mixx allows visitors to create profiles and designate or bookmark your "favorite" blogs. Offering users similar attributes to a "StumbleUpon", one can also rate your favorite blogs, videos and photos as well.
As a test, I decided to try out Mixx.com and upload my own Ann Arbor real estate blog as a favorite. Other visitors can vote on the link too. It will be interesting to see what additional traffic and Google power this site will provide. If it's anything like StumbleUpon I can tell by the amount of traffic I receive when someone "Stumbles" my blog.
If so share we the other Rainmakers what results you have realized by creating your profile there.
Until next time,
Martin
P.S. We empower Ann Arbor and greater Washtenaw County home buyers and sellers by educating them to the user-friendly technology tools at their disposal. Visit The Bouma Group Ann Arbor Real Estate Blog to learn more about how we are helping Ann Arbor consumers succeed.
In an effort to offer even more high-value information on the Washtenaw County real estate market, Bouma.com now offers our website guest more market data. Offering highly organized information about our Ann Arbor and Chelsea real estate markets allows the consumer to gain a better perspective of the Washtenaw County real estate market as a whole.
Below is an example of the type of information shared with Bouma.com site guests.
Another very useful tool provided to both Ann Arbor home buyers and sellers compliments of Trulia is the number of sold homes data for Ann Arbor.
While real estate data can be helpful, never base your buying and selling decisions solely on this information. It is recommended you contact a local Ann Arbor real estate team for a complete review of the Washtenaw County real estate market.
Until next time,
Martin
P.S. We empower Ann Arbor and greater Washtenaw County home buyers and sellers by educating them to the user-friendly technology tools at their disposal. Visit The Bouma Group Ann Arbor Real Estate Blog to learn more about how we are helping Ann Arbor consumers succeed.
It used to be that a real estate agent needed a real estate website. The next step in the progression was to 
have multiple websites. Then along came map-based property search tools. Soon after that every agent needed to have a real estate blog. Those innovations were soon followed by the snazzy StreetView functionality powered by Google maps for our neighborhoods (if available in your area). Do you see where this is headed?
I don't know about your state's RE licensing laws but here in Michigan we are required by state law to be loyal to our clients, obey the laws, be financially prudent with other people's funds and conduct our business in a "skillful" manner. That actually means being on your "A" game with new technologies and how those technologies relate to our real estate market. Are you on keeping a finger on the ever-changing pulse of new technologies as they relate to the mobile computing crowd?
Much has been said here and at many other real estate related websites about the virtues of the iPhone. While I don't personally own an iPhone, I truly believe it is far and away one of the coolest mobile devices of its kind. Now add to that all the great applications that can be downloaded and you quickly see why millions of these devices have been sold since the new "Souped Up" G3 version hit the market in mid-July.
Like I said earlier, while I don't own an iPhone that doesn't mean I don't recognize its value and practical use as it
relates to our Ann Arbor real estate market. In fact, The Bouma Group ensures every one of our Ann Arbor MLS property listings are visiable to iPhone owners. This is accomplished by uploading our featured Ann Arbor properties to Trulia. That way mobile computing home buyers can search for Ann Arbor homes for sale via the Trulia Property Search application on their iPhones. Of course, many cell phones provide Internet connectivity. The Trulia APP on the iPhone is just another tool for consumers to find their next home.
By uploading our Ann Arbor listings to Trulia, our featured properties are “exposed” to a whole new set of potential buyers who search for homes via their iPhones. One of the really cool “APP’s” (short for applications) available to iPhone users is the Trulia property search application. Armed with an iPhone and the Trulia Property Search APP, a consumer has the ability to:
By virtue of uploading all our Ann Arbor listings to Trulia, our featured properties are visible to a wider audience of home buyers many of whom are mobile computing home buyers. This allows us to differentiate The Bouma Group in our market!
Be sure to comment and let the rest of us know what iPhone applications you use in your part of the world.
Until next time,
Martin
P.S. We empower Ann Arbor and greater Washtenaw County home buyers and sellers by educating them to the user-friendly technology tools at their disposal. Visit The Bouma Group Ann Arbor Real Estate Blog to learn more about how we are helping Ann Arbor consumers succeed.
Ann Arbor's Largest Art Fair!
The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair begins July 16-19th, 2008 drawing over 500,000 visitors to the streets of Downtown Ann Arbor and the central campus of The University of Michigan. This nationally acclaimed street fair was named "Number One Street Fair" in the country in 2004 and remains on a list of Top Ten Fairs by the readers of AmericanStyle. Enjoy a whirlwind of artisan tents, hob nob with locals at the Townie Street Party, experience fantastic visual art workshops and enjoy local musicians and street performers.
To learn more about The Ann Arbor Art Fair and receive tips on finding the best route to the fair, click on The Bouma Group Blog.
To learn more about taking advantage of the local real estate market, please visit our website. Keep in mind there is no fee for working with a Realtor/Buyer's Agent to find a home. Feel free to preview our team and free services, such as our free moving truck at: www.bouma.com Our innovative site provides cutting edge interactive maps, an updated blog, community links and much much more!
Ann Arbor real estate agent expert Martin Bouma should be your #1 choice for your Washtenaw County home buying and selling needs. For experience, competence, and top-shelf skills, choose Martin Bouma.
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
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