Looking to Buy a House

[Art]

I have a real estate agent and will be seeing some houses in Cranbury tonight. However, if anyone knows of any for sale by owner properties please let me know. Price range 650-925k. Thanks.

[john]

[Art]

Yes, I saw that tonight. I could see where others would like it, but the exterior does not hold appeal for me personally. Since its in a development, the neighboring houses are quite similar in appearance -- personally, I don't really care for any of them. Shame because it is in a good location and backs preservation land.
The people that live there should feel pride in ownership - they are nice houses - just not our thing.

Not sure what you call the development, but there are quite a few houses in the price range we are looking in the stites/perrine/bodine/old trenton development, and one on neighboring danser. Its a matter of personal preference of course, but I find many of those homes quite attractive. The home on Silver is quite nice also, although probably too much money for us.

[john]

The reason I mentioned this one in particular is because I prefer a quiet location and privacy. I don't want to be waked up by traffic noise in the morning, and I prefer a bigger lot.

When I was looking for a home in Cranbury, I liked the moden design of the houses in the 'stites/perrine/bodine' areas (Cranbuey Greene), but I did not buy it there because of the smaller lot and the close proximity to RT-130.

I liked the houses in Silvers Lane, too. I could not afford to buy one there, either. By looking at the map, it seems the houses there are also close to RT-130.

This one on Danser Dr. looks very nice on the photo. The location is not too close to RT-130.

http://cranbury.info/viewtopic.php?t=945

[Art]

Yeah we saw that one. It is indeed fairly nice, probably my top choice if we cannot afford 16 Silver.

So this is one of 3 homes in Cranbury Green that are all like 879. A fourth that is closer to Rt 130 and is empty (=motivated seller) is 799. Any opinion on what they are really worth?

[john]

Most seller want their home sold by the time the school starts, so your timing is prety good.

Check out the recent home sales pricing records here:

http://www.cranbury.info/viewforum.php?f=20

It seems Cranbury Green homes are tougher to sell this year.

Based on my records:

5 Danser Dr. was sold around 5/2002 for $495,100.
12 Danser Dr. was sold around 7/2004 for $700,000.
18 Silvers Ln. was sold around 9/2001 for $700,000.
19 Silvers Ln. was sold around 8/2003 for $780,000.
10 Stites Dr. was sold around 9/2005 for $820,000.
11 Stites Dr. was sold around 7/2005 for $900,000.

The market is soft now; if there is no competing buyer (ask the seller's agent or your agent) for a house you like, then make a -$20K offer and see what happens.

[Art]

Thanks a lot. Very helpful comparables.

[guest]

You keep saying it is a buyers market to suggest that buyers can get very competitive pricing, but why do you assume the seller's are acknowledging this notion?

We just bid on one of the highest priced listing in Cranbury. It has been on the market for over three months (first as a FSBO then with an agent). The seller's agent, our buyer's agent and their mutual branch manager broker (same agency for both) all encouraged us to put in a bid below ask since we still thought it was high and we not going to bid. The manager broker even set the ask price himself (didn’t even want to know what we would pay up to, because he said that the offer they were putting out was the fair market offer based on the comps and current market conditions). Not only did the seller’s not accept it, they apparently were insulted to even be offered more than slightly below list. In the end their best offer was 0.7% below the listing price. And that is with zero other offers to date, less than one person even viewing the home a week and an ask price that is still higher than any sale ever in the neighborhood and 40% above what they paid just 3 years ago. And apparently the owner is a real estate broker (though not the sellers broker in this case) and has already relocated out of the market…

Clearly not everyone has got the message that it is a "buyers market." The agents involved, on both sides, are completely exasperated by the seller, but hey, it's their home and they are entitled to still believe that prices are going up-up-up. My point is, from what I have heard, they are not alone. That is why inventories are so high. The broker manager shared an interesting stat with me. He says their firm has almost exactly the same number of buyers this year as last year. The only difference is they are not buying as quickly because there is still such a gap between what the buyers collectively set as the market and what sellers have accepted. In other words, a lot of sellers are being stubborn about accepting the change in the market. They saw their neighbors cash in during the last couple of years and they expect a similar return on investment, with interest for the last year – despite the fact, according to the brokers, that prices realistically should be about what they were 16-18 months ago…

In any event, good luck to you. Not all seller’s are in denial. And ultimately, even if the one for the house you love is, remember that at even the current prices it is worth it is you expect to live in it long term…

[guest]

[quote="john"]

[john]

I did not see the inside of the house, so I cannot tell whether it is well kept. But I am not surprised to know it may need a lot of work.

Given that the house on 11 Washington Dr. just 'sold in a week' for the full asking price of $799,000, and this one has better location and a pool, I believe it will be purchased in a short time if it were listed for $779,000 (i.e., $10K less).

This corner home on Washington Dr. is under contract now:
http://cranbury.info/viewtopic.php?t=782

The asking price is $929,000. Do you know the agree-upon price? (This one seems to be well kept.)

Another one (on Hardley Dr.) that is on the market since last November is asking for $759,900. It looks like a nice house, but the for-sale sign just stays there (maybe because it has a tennis court in the backyard?).

[guest]

[guest]

[john]

[Art]

I saw the home with the tennis court. One tends to forget how big a tennis court is. It looks majorly out of place in a yard of this size. The house is partially updated, still dated in places. Might be a good deal for an ardent tennis player willing to do some work, but its not for everyone.

Sounds like there is at least one other buyer in my price range. Lets try not to get into any bidding wars, eh?

[Ben]

[john]

Most home owners will be sellers some time in the future.

I have nothing against a seller trying to make a handsome profit. It takes two parties to make a deal, so as long as the buyer is willing to pay the price, it's a deal.

If a seller sets an overly high price on the property, then the risk is that there could be no deal in the near future. If that's ok with the seller, no complains here. As a buyer, I'll definitely avoid such a property.

There are more selections in today's market, and that means less bidding wars and more motivated sellers. That's all good news for the buyers.