Foreclosures, foreclosures, foreclosures... St Cloud MLS Tops 300 Foreclosed Properties
The most recent search of foreclosed properties both active and pending sale on the St Cloud MLS resulted in over 310 such properties. This is not the greatest of news for people who are thinking of listing their homes for sale in the new year. As a home seller, your competition was almost always other home sellers. Now, with the amount of foreclosed properties and their varying conditions, a home sellers biggest challenge is to take a buyer away from the bank.
I have sold 3 of these foreclosed properties recently. While it is great for the buyer (they are undoubtedly getting great deals), it doesn't keep the chain going for traditional sellers. In a normal real estate transaction chain, a first time home buyer purchases a home from a seller who in turn purchases a bigger home from a seller, etc. With this new foreclosure inventory, more first time home buyers are opting to purchase a foreclosure and immediately stop the sales chain.
Advice in 2008 for sellers and buyers:
For Sellers: If you need to sell, by all means sell. Be sure to have your real estate agent do their homework to ensure that you can compete with today's market conditions. Forget your assessed value and what your last refinance appraisal amounts were and really listen to what your real estate professional is telling you. The data they compile from the St Cloud MLS could be the difference in selling your home and staying in your home. It is now much more important than recent years to have a truly accurate competitive market analysis done on your home to reflect what the market is willing to pay.
For Buyers: Buy! It's as simple as that. Get set up on an automated search by your real estate professional that will send you homes that are of interest to you immediately. Some of the great deals that I am seeing on the St Cloud MLS are only hanging around for a week or so. If you are thinking about purchasing, get pre-approved and wait for the right home to come along. Rates are still very favorable and the deals are better than I have seen in the last 4+ years. Lastly, don't be afraid to jump. I have had several buyers recently who are kicking themselves for not taking action on the house they wanted. If you know a home is a great deal and you love it - buy it.
Jason Tangen - Real Estate Broker Associate with Edina Realty of St Cloud
www.StCloudEdina.com - Home of the e-Market Analysis (Free Home Value Estimator)
jasontangen.edinarealty.com - Search the St Cloud MLS
