It’s time once again for the monthly reporting roundup, where you can read my wry commentary about the news instead of subjecting yourself to boring rehashes of the NWMLS press release (or in addition to, if that’s what floats your boat).
To kick things off, here’s an excerpt from the NWMLS press release:
"Healthy marketplaces" emerging with shrinking inventory, favorable financing
Home sales finished the year much stronger than they started, with pending sales for the fourth quarter outgaining the first quarter by more than 3,000 transactions for a 21 percent increase, according to new figures from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
…
“All over we are seeing healthy marketplaces emerge as the inventory levels drop,” said J. Lennox Scott, CEO and chairman of John L. Scott Real Estate. “As you get closer to the job centers of Seattle and Bellevue, the marketplace is looking strong again,” he added while expressing optimism for the coming year. “The outlook for 2012 is the continuation of a strengthening marketplace, especially in the more affordable to mid range priced homes.”
…
OB Jacobi, president of Windermere Real Estate, believes the market has undergone a shift. “Where we’ve been during the past year is a place of transition. It has been a slow recovery, but the housing market has finally turned a corner, albeit a soft one with some bumps along the way,” he commented.Despite rising sales, Jacobi, a member of the Northwest MLS board of directors, noted foreclosures and short sales continue to cause downward pressure on prices. “Many would-be sellers are still wary of the market, and as a result, there are fewer homes for sale,” he observed, adding, “At the same time, there are buyers who are eager to strike while the iron is hot, so in some areas, homes are selling before many buyers even have a chance to react.”
Um, no. Most would-be sellers are not “wary of the market.” They’re stuck in their homes. They’ve been “priced in” and simply couldn’t sell even if they wanted to, because they’ve got no equity, can’t afford to take the loss, and aren’t likely to get their lender to approve a short sale.
Here’s a slight variation on the closed sales chart I posted yesterday, to give you an idea what a “healthy marketplace” apparently looks like:
Read on for my take on this month’s local news reports.
Eric Pryne, Seattle Times: King County median home price falls by double digits again
Probably because they’re cheaper, distressed properties also are pushing sales volumes up compared to a year ago: King County single-family home sales were up 0.5 percent, condo sales 20 percent, Snohomish County house sales nearly 21 percent last month.
What’s more, analysts say, competition from short sales and bank-repossessed homes almost certainly is discouraging many prospective sellers from putting their houses on the market: in King County, 25 percent fewer homes were listed for sale last month than in December 2010.
“If people aren’t forced to sell, they’re not [selling],” said land-use economist Matthew Gardner. “They’re willing to wait until they see more signs of stability in the market.”
…
Reports that more homeowners are falling behind on their mortgages suggest the distressed-property pipeline won’t unclog anytime soon, said Glenn Crellin, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at the University of Washington.That should keep prices from rising, he said.
Bingo! Not to mention all the pent-up supply Gardner alludes to. Once there’s any sign of stability, sellers will rush the market.
Aubrey Cohen, Seattle P-I: Home sale surge abated in December
A surge that buoyed Seattle-area home sales in the second half of 2011 lost some steam in December, while prices continued to fall, according to a report released Wednesday.
Sales of King County homes rose 4.1 percent from a year earlier — down from a 46.1 percent jump in November and the lowest year-to-year increase since June, according to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. Annual comparisons had been boosted in recent months by the fact that sales were depressed in the second half of 2010, after a homebuyer tax credit expired.
Okay so he says right there in the article that the year-over-year numbers were high only because last year was in the crapper, not because this year was high, but he’s still calling it a “surge” in sales? Huh? Does the chart above look like a “surge” in 2011 sales to you?
I’ve come to expect better than this from Aubrey. This month it feels like he’s just phoning it in.
Michelle Dunlop, Everett Herald: County home sales increase, prices fall
Snohomish County’s housing market closed out the last month of 2011 on the same projection as the past six months: home sales continued to rise while home prices declined.
About 846 single family homes and condos were sold in the county last month, according to a report released Wednesday by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. Sales were up 23.7 percent from the same month in 2010.
However, the median home price fell 9.3 percent to $222,750, down from $245,700 in December 2010.
Most of the rest of the article is just wholesale quotes from the press release.
Rolf Boone, Tacoma News Tribune: As Pierce County home sales rise, prices tumble
The Pierce County housing market ended the year on a sour note as median home prices once again fell by a double-digit margin in the year-over-year December period, according to data released Wednesday by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
That’s good news for the prospective home buyer in search of a deal, but tough on the home seller trying to sell as values continue to plummet.
Gotta love how they call it a “sour note,” but then go on to admit that it’s good for buyers. Rolf even admits just a few paragraphs later that low prices “have helped to stimulate Pierce County home sales.” Doesn’t sound so sour to me.
Rolf Boone, The Olympian: Thurston County home sales rise 5% in December
Thurston County home sales rose 5 percent in December, ending the year on an encouraging note after sales were down or flat for most of 2011, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service data released Wednesday.
Although sales eked out an end-of-the-year gain, median prices continued a downward trend, falling 7 percent, the combined single-family-residence and condominium data show.
Wait, falling prices and rising sales are “sour” in Pierce County but “encouraging” in Thurston? Huh? Note that both of these articles were written by the same guy…
(Eric Pryne, Seattle Times, 01.04.2012)
(Aubrey Cohen, Seattle P-I, 01.04.2012)
(Michelle Dunlop, Everett Herald, 01.04.2012)
(Rolf Boone, Tacoma News Tribune, 01.05.2012)
(Rolf Boone, The Olympian, 01.05.2012)
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I would agree with you that we’re not in a healthy market, but I have a hard time with you pointing to sales from 2005 on when the whole purpose of this site originally was to demonstrate that the market was messed up.
A healthy market would IMHO be one with sales lower than 2005-2007, but higher than 2008-2011.
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Median pendings reached a new low. I don’t know why that does not get reported, while the pending volumes do! Median pendings are not as good of indicator as what they once were, but they’re much more useful than pending volumes, because pending volumes are nearly worthless.
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Just drove by the Newberry Realty multicolor LED sign.
61 homes under $100,000…all 3 bedroom.
Go man, go!
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RE: John Bailo @ 3 – I can’t get exactly that number, but if you eliminate short sales, it’s about half of that. If for some reason you eliminated both REO and short sale, it would only be a handfull. Edit: I didn’t exclude mobile homes in getting those numbers.
Numbers references from NWMLS sources, but not compiled by or guaranteed by the NWMLS.
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http://money.cnn.com/2011/12/30/real_estate/federal_housing_bailout/index.htm
Looks like the FHA is saying it’ll need to be bailed out if national prices drop another 4% or 5%. Of course they never say it like that:
The FHA claims its total liquid assets are $400 million higher than a year ago and home prices would have to fall 4% to 5% before the agency would need a bailout. It said it has also recognized expected losses and planned for them by raising upfront insurance premiums to bolster its assets.
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RE: Chris @ 5 –
FHA is as doomed as Greece and we all known it for years. However since it helps keeps the banks afloat on what will become the tax payers tab it’s all inline with the inverted Robin Hood state we live in.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 4 –
Kary – Do you see any conflict on the horizon between real estate agents and banks? It seems the banking industry and NAR are in lock step on PR spin and lobbying but it seems to me the banks want prices held artificially high and agents (and local governments) would be better off with lower prices and higher sales. Do you hear grumbling from agents about policy yet?
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RE: patient @ 6 –
I don’t know much about the PMI insurance FHA requires but it looks like some people aren’t putting much faith in it, even at FHA. Anyone know much about it? I know MBIA provided the PMI for the private loans and that didn’t seem to end well. Reminds me of how Greece was convinced to replace its reserve with paper by Goldman Sachs.
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RE: Chris @ 8 –
A “business” model that insure loans with 3.5% down while prices are falling with double that per year in many places is all I need to know. If it wasn’t on all our expense it would be comical.
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By Chris @ 7:
I’ve heard a bit of grumbling about contract terms on REOs, but not much. I wouldn’t expect the contract terms to change unless they’re forced somehow.
I think the main conflict is over short sales and banks taking so long.to decide. That really is hurting everyone, including banks.
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RE: patient @ 9 – You need to balance the exposure of the FHA against that of the FDIC.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 10 –
I wonder what is going on with those banks and the wait for modifications and short sales. I can’t imagine there’s much more than a formula they have to run through. If they supposedly can take a credit report (and not look at a person’s salary or savings) and turn it into a credit score I don’t know why they can’t do the same with the info they need for a modification or short sale.
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RE: patient @ 9 –
But without a government guarantee how would someone be able to get a $730k home with only $25,000 down? Do you expect people to pay for a hot tub and pool out of pocket?
http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2011/11/17/lawmakers-move-to-restore-higher-fha-loan-limits/
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I’m calling a triple-sized fat and wide bottom right now. And it’s only 54 months away! Here’s what it’s going to look like when we finally get there. :)
http://fatgrrl.com/wp-content/2007/06/fatbottomedgirls_artstyle.jpg
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By Chris @ 12:
The thing that would take the longest is determining value, even that shouldn’t take much more than a week.
The reason it takes so long is banks are living in the past and not spending enough resources on it.
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RE: Jonness @ 14 –
Oh come ON. Sheesh, First we had picking up toothpicks with butt cheeks, an image which I am still not quite over; then its marbles with sphincters – more trauma; furthered by endless discussion of bowel issues; now this. Given the overall schadenFREUDe of the posters, I can arrive at only one diagnosis, Seattle Bubblegoats-Retentive Behavior.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 15 –
It’s not just the banks. In many cases the banks only manage the process, but have to check with the investors who now own the loan, as well as the PMI folks who are paying off on the shortfall while trying to settle on a price that keeps the buyers interested. That’s a lot of conflicting interests trying to come to an agreement. And while values may be easy to determin in more or less homogeneous urban neighborhoods in the outlying areas there’s a lot more variability and uncertainty.
There’s also the assumption that the banks and their insurers want to hurry the process up which is probably untrue. In many cases the banks can only absorb so many losses per quarter without compromising their capital requirements. We’ve all heard that both PMI and FANNIE/FREDDIE are financially on the ropes, so why would they want to hurry toward insolvency?
I expect the process and its speed are more managed than we imagine, perhaps starting at a Federal level.
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Ray Pepper’s much anticipated principal writedowns at work:
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/02/143601604/in-mortgage-crisis-some-banks-agree-to-cut-losses
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RE: Scotsman @ 17 – Your first paragraph is raising the issue of servicers, which is also a problem.
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RE: Chris @ 5 – I think the vast majority of readers don’t know what you’re driving at. Pour moi, my response is +1.
Can you imagine the pain if banks were forced to write off loans that were 120+ days delinquent? Why, that would be an affront to capitalism! or communism! or something… Obviously, breaking up the banks would be succumbing to the terrorists, right??? Right???
I had the pain of listening to NPR today. It doesn’t happen often. I was amused to hear their coverage of the Warren replacement: no mention WHATSOEVER of breaking up the TBTF banks. Instead, idiotic coverage of payday loan operations, as if they somehow compared to the top five TBTF institutions.
I think there should be a national game: in a national news coverage of the Republican campaign, one shot for every news “event” for which no mention is made of Ron Paul, as long as he polls within one standard deviation of the front-runner.
At one point in my college career I thought I would be a Soviet analyst – well, the US media’s coverage of Paul certainly would qualify.
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By ChrisM @ 20:
We broke up Ma Bell in the 70s, or whenever. Long before that we broke up Standard Oil.
Now we have entities that are called TOO BIG TO FAIL, but even though they’re highly regulated entities, there’s no discussion at all of breaking them up. It really doesn’t make a lot of sense. We broke up Ma Bell and Standard Oil to keep people from paying too high of prices. Here the risk is the collapse of the entire economy, but nothing?
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RE: Chris @ 8 – You should ask that question over at Yves’ site.
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By Kary L. Krismer @ 21:
Wrong. There is constant discussion of breaking them up. Unfortunately it won’t happen until the deciders are not getting funds from the very parties that they need to break up.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 21 – Naturally, I agree with you, Kary! We’ve had what, two-three years since the collapse, but no mention whatsoever of a breakup?
Any of you OWS supporters out there? This is something you need to research/address.
If something needs to be bailed out by the govt because it is too big to fail (TBTF) then that entity needs to be broken up ASAP. We’ve watched banks get bailed out, but the current administration seems to be completely uninterested in fixing the problem.
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RE: Pegasus @ 23 – Please elaborate. I like to think I’m well informed about this topic, but I don’t understand your point.
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By ChrisM @ 24
It would probably be more effective from the Tea Party, since they actually tend to accomplish things. It could also probably help Romney break past 25% if he supported such a thing. If President Obama supported it first, he’d probably get re-elected even if unemployment this November were at 12%.
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RE: ChrisM @ 25 – Pegasus, please list serious posts that talk about breaking up TBTF banks.
You know that I’m going to bring up Bill Black’s posts about what happened during the 90′s S&L bank failures. Please be prepared to respond.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 26 – Kary, I agree – Tea Party is more respectable than OWS. However, I believe both entities have been gamed.
Hopefully a third party will emerge, one that has studied prior failures. Historically, one could look at Sam Adams, Thomas Paine and others, to see how much power they retained once the dust settled.
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RE: ChrisM @ 25 – Chris there is constant discussion of breaking up the “TOO BIG TO FAIL” institutions. Read about the Volcker Rule being watered down, Greenspan’s testimonies, etc. It is in constant discussion. Only a fool says that “there’s no discussion at all of breaking them up”. The problem is that the ones that need to be broken up have tremendous contributions going to Congress and lobbyists working to influence those that can vote to do so.
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RE: Jonness @ 18 –
Jonness this has been happening everywhere now for the last 6 months.. The BIG BOYS are starting to finally get it! Soon EVERYONE will realize just how GREAT their BUBBLE PURCHASE WAS!
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RE: Pegasus @ 29 – I like to think I’m on top of TBTF breakup attempts. Your assertion that there is a politically significant attempt at breaking up TBTF banks is ludicrous. Please provide counter-examples.
I’m somewhat astonished at Pegasus’ attempts at whatever he’s attempting. For examples
of my assertion I offer pretty much any result of a search for TBTF:
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2009/10/the-problem-is-not-tbtf-but-tdtr.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/12/philip-mirowski-the-seekers-or-how-mainstream-economists-have-defended-their-discipline-since-2008-%e2%80%93%c2%a0part-iii.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2009/10/volcker-glass-steagall-and-the-real-tbtf-problem.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/04/the-fdics-rosy-theoretical-misleading-lehman-resolution-counterfactual-or-why-tbtf-is-still-tbtf.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2009/10/the-problem-is-not-tbtf-but-tdtr.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/04/the-fdics-rosy-theoretical-misleading-lehman-resolution-counterfactual-or-why-tbtf-is-still-tbtf.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/01/roger-ehrenbergs-prescription-for-robbing-a-bank-the-tbtf-variety.html
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2010/11/were-us-auditors-told-to-fudge-opinions-on-tbtf-banks.html
Pegasus – If I’m not understanding your point (and really, I don’t) please explain what you’re trying to prove.
Really, how much effort does this really require, and how much is calculated?
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RE: Pegasus @ 29 – Hi Pegasus, kind of ironic – I had some links to support my post, but they’re in moderation limbo.
I think there is no one in a position of power advocating for a TBTF breakup. If you have a credible source advocating a TBTF breakup, please list it here.
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RE: ChrisM @ 20 –
Interesting about your TBTF bank post. The government likes to appear to do something for their money so they come down hard on the little fish. God help you if you only take hundreds of thousands from the credulous – they will threaten you with 25 years in prison and hound you to death. If you do the same with billions you can work for the regulators and never risk prosecution. Look at all the resources they threw at Dupre and his silly vitamin sales.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2004255/Don-Lapre-TV-pitchman-faces-25-years-1-bed-prison-cell-52m-fraud.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/03/donald-lapre-dead-pitchma_n_992018.html
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 21 –
You mean the government should break up the strong banks(JPM, WFC, BAC) that the same government begged & cajoled to take over the failed banks(BSC,WAMU, WB, CFC, ML) 3 short years ago? H*ll, the feds even paid them to do it.
IOW, they weren’t too big to fail when the feds begged them to take over the failed institutions, but they are too big to fail now that they did what the feds asked?
You simply can’t have it both ways.
Fine, break them up, if you now feel they are TBTF…but have the cajones to say, ‘we made a big mistake with these mergers 3-5 years ago’…and everyone involved with said mergers should be summarily fired and all past/future pay & retirements clawed back/cancelled.., which includes Obama, Geitner, Dudley, Bernanke, Bush2, Paulson and others too numerous to mention. That’s accountability.
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They say We Stopped the Great Depression With Trillions to the Banksters
How the Hades can the news print such wild allegations? The only way you can prove that was to not have bailed them out in the first place and see what happenned.
And on that topic, Great Depression averted….they say unemployment down to early 2009 levels today, the lowest in 3 years. That’s good news? If improvements are based on a DOW of 8000 from 2009, we could say DOW 9000 is the good times? Tell that to the ones that bought their stock at DOW 14000 in 2007 [or worse yet, the Masses that sold their stock at DOW 8000]. Same historical reference thing with real estate IMO too.
SWE’s 2011 Investment Wrapup: Longterm CDs, Longterm Bonds, American Stocks, Foreign Stocks, Foreign Stocks
Dec 0.15% 1.01% 1.04% (0.04%) (2.03%)
YTD 2.45% 7.89% 2.11% (3.38%) (11.81%)
Last 12 mo 2.45% 7.89% 2.11% (3.38%) (11.81%)
I heard S&P was flat for the year in the American stock portion.
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This topic has obviously run its course.
Anything else?
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By Dirty Renter @ 34:
I don’t see how that is any more inconsistent than the government begging BOA to buy Countrywide and then continuing to pursue fines for Countrywide’s prior sins.
But in any case, the breakup is not necessarily bad for the shareholders or the entities. Perhaps they will lose some efficiencies, but the risk of a total loss would be greatly reduced. Imagine if I had a LLC which owned 10 large apartment buildings in Seattle, and Seattle demanded that I break up that ownership. How damaged would I be? The cost of attorney fees for preparing 9 new LLCs? And if something bad happened to one of the buildings, the other buildings would be isolated from that loss. I as the owner would benefit.
Stated differently, I’m not suggesting nationalizing the entities. I don’t see it as that significant of a thing to do.
Finally, I would note that AIG is in effect being broken up, although that process is slow, because they want third party buyers. So it’s not like saving and breaking up is not already occurring.
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RE: Passed Doo @ 36 – Thank you, PD. I wish I had more than just one up-tumb to give you!
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RE: softwarengineer @ 35 – I read two news stories, and neither mentioned how much of the drop in unemployment was due to people giving up.
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RE: Kary L. Krismer @ 39 –
I’m With You Kary
Sometimes I think the lower the number the worse it likely gets, lowered UE insurance propping things up comes to mind.
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RE: softwarengineer @ 35 – This is like that bit in Curb Your Enthusiasm, where Larry makes a bet with his doctor on whether or not a treatment will make him “better”. Then he goes back to the doctor and says he feels “better”, and the doc says “oh well then I win the bet, you said better” and Larry says “no not all the way better, just better than before” and they go back and forth.
You see the difference SWE? What % unemployment would you consider good news? Lowest ever? Lowest this year? Or somewhere in between? You gotta start somewhere.
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RE: “Better” @ 41 – Please pick one name and stick with it. Every time you put a new name in the comment field your comment gets stuck in moderation.
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Despite rising sales, Jacobi, a member of the Northwest MLS board of directors, noted foreclosures and short sales continue to cause downward pressure on prices. “Many would-be sellers are still wary of the market, and as a result, there are fewer homes for sale,” he observed, adding, “At the same time, there are buyers who are eager to strike while the iron is hot, so in some areas, homes are selling before many buyers even have a chance to react.”
Bingo! For my situation and the areas I’m looking in (Green Lake, Phinney, Ravenna, Ballard), this is the major issue right now. For 2011, the situation we experienced generally played out as follows – (1) house comes on the market, (2) we look at house and think it could work (but definitely not thrilled) but overpriced, (3) agent tells us that even though only listed 1-4 days, there are already a number of offers and that the seller is making a decision tonight/tomorrow and (4) we subsequently discover that the house sold for more than we would have offered. Not enough decent inventory combined with people hungry enough to buy at a higher price than I’d pay.
The wife is antsy to buy while I’m completely content with apartment living (we’ve been looking on and off since 2007 – no kids and a small dog). Despite the wife’s strong desire to buy, I refuse to enter a bidding war and “win” the right to pay more than I feel comfortable with, especially with the less than appealing inventory that currently exists in our price range. To her credit, she has come to the same conclusion as me despite her stronger desire to buy.
Our lease expires in March and we are not even seriously looking. Plan on signing a one year lease and hope sales pick up this year so seller’s will put more and better inventory. I doubt we’ll see better inventory over the next 12 months, but I am trying to be more optimistic in 2012.
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RE: m-s @ 16 – LOL!
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RE: Peloton @ 43 –
We have entered a Real Estate market place where no one can wait for things to change. Making a purchase will take much, much more than waiting, and hoping for a good deal.
You’ll notice most Real Estate professionals no longer like to use the term “getting a deal,” or getting, and keeping a “deal” together. Everybody is way too high class for that.
The fact is that you are going to need a shark, or barracuda. The day is coming that if you think a Real Estate transaction needs to feel good, you’ll be paying way too much.
You need a person who will hunt a deal, and get it closed. If any of you think that you have the gumption, then write your own deal, trust no one. Any one can write a Purchase, and Sale for their own home. Attorney review runs between $600, to $1200.
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RE: David Losh @ 45 –
Agree completely. I’m not looking, waiting or hoping for a “deal” or to “feel good.” Buying a house is very low on my list of priorities and the only reason its on the list is because the wife wants one. No house will ever make me “feel good.” A house is merely a place to store your things and sleep.
However, if I do look for a house I want something that I can see myself in for 10+ years that won’t require much in the way of immediate upgrades. I have plenty of other things I’d like to do with my money than sink it into a house. What I want to see is better inventory, period. I want to see houses that have been well taken care of without asking 2007 prices and I’m not willing to settle for much less. Believe it or not, its not the pricing that has kept us from buying but the lack of any houses that piqued our interest enough to even submit an offer. In our 5 years, we’ve seen a total of 3 houses we thought worked for us, but others were willing to pay much more than we were. There’s the rub, we just are not as “motivated” as some other buyers. Perhaps that’s our problem. I believe you’ve comment before about just approaching owners that have not put their house on the market and offering them something. That may work for some people, but probably not most and not for us as it goes again to the motivation issue. We’ll end up with a house some day. In the meantime, I’ll be enjoying the time I’m not spending going to open houses.
I trust our agent to help us find the house we want (again, not a “deal” but the house we want). Our agent is not a baracuda, but he knows that if we find a place we like we will pay what we think the home is worth regardless of list price and we expect him to pursue that price with gusto. We fired our first agent because we spent too much time fighting with her about what constitutes an insulting offer (personally, I don’t believe such a thing exists). I’m an attorney, but have no experience with real estate. Time is more important to me than $ so I don’t mind hiring an attorney if I think necessary.
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RE: Peloton @ 46 –
Two years ago at a pre Thanksgiving cocktail party a young Real Estate agent told me his brokerage had no training program. He didn’t know what to do. He now sells cars, because the customers walk through the door daily.
I talked with the owner of the Real Estate company the young man left, and gave him a copy of Mike Ferry telephone scripts for expired listings, and cold calling. Of course those scripts went into the trash, I’m sure, because most Brokerages are way to sophisticated to do cold calling.
Another young agent knocked on 300 doors his first year in business, and survived, even thrived, in these past seven years from contacts he made at those 300 doors.
Your comment about your agent not understanding what constitutes an insulting offer is very true. Agents are afraid. Back in the bad old days an agent had to write a dozen low ball offers before something hit.
No one likes to hear, or read, these kinds of comments about Real Estate “sales people.” No one wants a Real Estate sales person calling during dinner. No one wants to meet a Real Estate sales person.
Well, here we are. The log jam is stuck, and people expect a miracle to occur to get the Real Estate market moving again.
Maybe the government will do something. Maybe those darn sellers will see the light, and it will be a miracle. Maybe if we get buyers to do more than “wait” then we can get some sales happening.
My proposal is much more old school of having an agent work the market place, and maybe you will find something.
Have you signed a Buyer’s Agency Agreement with your agent? If not what is the incentive to go out looking for you? Because in this market some one is going to have to do some real looking.
We are in a market place where trees are going to need to be shaken, and bushes need to be beat.
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[...] being those whose foreclosures provide a stream of distressed properties for the market. But Seattle Bubble’s Tim Ellis notes that there’s a larger group now caught in a kind of paralysis: Most would-be sellers [...]
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