Ask the Realtor - Important for Both Buyers & Sellers to know the Number of Days a property has been listed!

Jim E. Flynn
"Experience
& Integrity"

Ask The Realtor

As printed in the OC Register / Saddleback Valley News

Written by Jim E. Flynn, Century 21 Beachside Realtors, Lake Mission Viejo

Sept. 25, 2009

Important for Both Buyers & Sellers to know the Number of Days a property has been listed !

Q. Tony from Mission Viejo asked isn’t it important for most buyers today to ask how many days the property they are considering has been on the market? We have friends that are looking and I asked them that question and they did not know?

A. Yes, Tony, it is important for buyers to know how long a property has been listed and most good Realtor/Brokers will share that information with their clients because it is important to help both the Buyers and the Sellers to determine their pricing strategy. The rest of the equation naturally includes an accurate determination of just what is the average "DOM" days on the market for like properties in the same neighborhood or tract. So if the average DOM in a neighborhood is 122 days and you as a buyer need to get settled for a new job or get your kids settled in before school, etc in 96 days you need to be aggressive with the timing or look for another property. This can also, include research by your Realtor/Broker to determine if, the property has been listed previously and then taken off the market for a time long enough for the MLS time clock records to reset. Waiting sometimes for a property to reflect a price reduction just because it has been listed longer than others in the neighborhood may also be unwise. If, the price is competitive and you feel you want to make an offer on the property discuss an offer with your Realtor/Broker and get it submitted. Understanding days on the market is very important.

Q. Brenda from San Juan Capistrano asked: Jim, our young married daughter and her husband still are considering buying a bank owned property or a foreclosed property but, they would also like to get the first time buyers $8,000 rebate and the low FHA financing. What should we tell them?

A. First I would explain to them that many first time home buyers, who are relying on the low down payments allowed by FHA financing just cannot compete with more qualified buyers and investors who are snapping up properties. Secondly, foreclosures continue to remain the hot ticket . according to the latest Stephen Thomas Market Update report there are currently only 334 active listings that are foreclosures in all of Orange County and they representing only 4.1% of the total inventory. Also, Brenda, he expected market time for foreclosures is 0.66 months, or between two and three weeks. Bank owned is a different story. My Real Estate Broker assoc. Partner and have had an offer on bank owned property since early July and just today finally got the green light that it was approved and would soon enter escrow however it is not expected to close until Oct. 31. …so it will have been close to 4 months for our patient buyers. The market is improving and we do have 2 other properties in Escrow currently, so share that with your daughter and son in-law and have them spend some quality time talking to a good Broker/Realtor before making any final decisions.

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