Southern Maryland Real Estate~ Jonathan Benya

The volume of foreclosures in P.G. County is still roiling the local real estate market. Inventory (Active Listings) continues to rise (over 8,000 homes available, there were less than 1,000 listings at the peak of the market), and home sales continue to slope downwards.

It's interesting to note that there was a spike in average sales price, but this is likely due to larger homes returning to a realm of affordability, and not a general market improvement. The average volume of sold properties continues to suffer, indicating further market challenges.

It's impossible to say when the market will turn around for P.G. County, but it is without a doubt still a long road ahead.

~Jonathan Benya- Realtor
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000
301-653-8116
Southern Maryland Real Estate Blog

Why are so many homes sitting on the Southern Maryland real estate market without a buyer? The answer is simple: The sellers are cat juggling!

Remember the Steve Martin movie "The Jerk"? Father Carlos Las Vegas De Cordoba shows Navin Johnson (Martin) an absurd video clip of cat juggling and Martin proceeds to cut a big fat check to Father Carlos to combat the evil cat jugglers. It's funny because the idea of cat juggling is absurd, and paying a church to stop it is even dumber.

Overpricing your home in a buyers market is a lot like cat juggling. It's completely absurd, and the only people who would even consider buying your home would be a true sucker. Even placing your home on the market for 2-3% more than the market comparisons show would be dangerous ground.

Think like your buyer: With two identical homes on the market, why would you write an offer on the higher priced home? You wouldn't, and neither would any other buyer with two cents worth of common sense. You'd write the offer on the lower priced home, because there's less hassle.

At some point sellers realize that nobody is really as stupid as Navin Johnson, and cat juggling makes absolutely no sense. In the meantime, buyers are forced to look at a lot of overpriced junk in order to find the right home, and cat jugglers are left fuming that their home hasn't sold.

~Jonathan Benya- Realtor
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000
301-653-8116
Southern Maryland Real Estate Blog

There seems to be a common misconception about buying a real estate foreclosure in Charles County. Banks are trying to get as much money as possible for the real estate they own, but they typically demand that their homes are sold "as-is" (What Does "as-is" mean in real estate?).

This does NOT mean that you should skip the home inspection! Quite the contrary, if you're trying to buy a primary residence, the inspection is absolutely crucial!

Don't believe me? Well, would you buy a car without knowing it runs? Buying a home without an inspection is the same concept. Does the furnace still work? Have the pipes burst? Have termites eaten through the walls? You just don't know without that inspection! I can see the marketing slogan now:

Lovely home with rustic living (furnace is shot, bring blankets), In-ground pool possible (Basement is flooded), and lots of natural light (Termites were hungry)!

Danger Will Robinson, Danger!

All you wanted was a great deal, and instead you end up with a money pit. While the inspection won't fix the problems, you are saving yourself from possible FINANCIAL DISASTER by knowing what sort of problems (if any) may exist. When it comes time to write a contract to purchase a foreclosure, bear this in mind:

1. The home is being sold as-is, and
2. The bank is not likely to do any repairs on the home, so....
3. The inspection is for "informational purposes only" (That's Legalese for: Don't even THINK of asking for repairs!)

If you want to keep yourself protected, make sure that any inspection being done for "informational purposes only" has a "walkaway" clause. This means that if you find something wrong with the inspection that you don't like, you can cancel the contract, get your deposit back, and find another property that suits you.

Banks are doing everything they can to relieve themselves of liability. As a buyer, you need to make sure that you and your Realtor are keeping your financial interests protected!

Got questions about buying a foreclosure? Give me a call!

~Jonathan Benya
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000
301-653-8116
Southern Maryland Real Estate Blog

Trying to buy one of the multiple foreclosures (REO, or Real Estate Owned) for sale in Waldorf, MD or Charles County MD? Most folks who are trying to buy a foreclosure are looking for a great deal, and while there are some deals to be had, it seems like there is just as much overpriced junk that needs to be reduced in order to sell.

In comes the concept of the low-ball offer. Low-balling is where you offer considerably less than the asking price on a home. It's easy enough to write (You always have the right to offer as much as you think is fair), but writing the offer and getting the bank to accept the offer are two very different things!

So how do you convince the banks to accept less than they want for a foreclosure? Well, there's a couple of ways to increase your chances of getting that offer accepted.

With a buyers market, the more enticing the TERMS of the contract are, the better your chances of getting the deal to closing. Think about what perks you have to offer in the contract. Here's an example of things that can make your offer more attractive:

1. Offer a quick closing- The less time the bank has to hold the property, the better off they are.
2. Don't request repairs- Banks are selling as is, and with a low-ball offer, structure it such that you are contingent upon an INSPECTION WITH WALK-AWAY rather than repairs
3. Avoid contingencies- If you want the banks to consider a low-ball offer, there has to be a good reason. Bogging down a contract with multiple contingencies is a good way to get the offer rejected.
4. Offer cash- With a cash offer, there's no risk of loans not being accepted, which can be very appealing to the bank.
5. Look for homes with "market rot"- Homes that have been up on the market for more than 150 days are good targets because the bank has been holding them for longer than they would like. They probably need to lower the price, and are more likely to take an offer.
6. Write a letter- Sounds cheezy, but outlining why you're offering this sort of price can help the bank make sense of the offer. Every little bit helps, and I've seen things like this actually make a big difference.

Related Posts:

What Does "AS-IS" Mean?
Waldorf, MD Foreclosure Update for August, 2008
Foreclosure Buying Tips Part 1
Foreclosure Buying Tips Part 2
Foreclosure Buying Tips Part 3

~Jonathan Benya
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000
301-653-8116
Southern Maryland Real Estate Blog

I have a real estate client who happened to find me through this blog. He and his lovely future wife were starting their new home search, and happened across my little piece of the world wide web, specifically through a blog post that I wrote called: "Are New Home Construction Prices Negotiable?"

They already owned a townhouse, but as the story often goes, there comes a time where you need to look at moving up, so a single family home was the goal. We managed to find a lovely model home in Upper Marlboro, just a few short miles from the area they already live in and love so much, and construction was not going to be completed until September, which was several months away.

We put his townhouse on the market, studied the average marketing time for his area and came up with an intelligent marketing and pricing strategy to get the home sold before his new home was completed.

All of the work analyzing timing, price, and market projections paid off! This week we ratified a fantastic offer for his townhouse, and hopefully we will be closing the same week as our client is due to settle on his new home!

There's a few things that make success stories like this happen:

1. Being realistic about the market value
2. Knowing how price impacts time on market
3. Marketing to the right buyers

Getting a contract ratified can be difficult in this market, but making the time frames work out this well is a BIG challenge, and proof that experience and hard work pays off, even in a slow market!

~Jonathan Benya
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St.
La Plata, MD 20646
301-653-8116
301-609-9000

http://www.teambenya.com