Hello Henrik,

Please, keep in mind that some lenders and appraisers won't look further back than three months because of the slowly declining market we have experienced. Property values in Palm Beach County have decreased in value approximately 1% per month, but that number can vary from area to area. I can focus on an area that you may be interested in and give you the information that better relates to the property you want to purchase. It would be my please to provide you with this information and to assist you in moving forward to Palm Beach County. Welcome Home to Florida. Welcome to Paradise.

Best Regards,

Stelios Stylianou
Marketing Specialist
stelios@stelsells.com
561.542.4131

Thu Jul 10 2008, 04:13

STATISTICS IN PALM BEACH COUNTY FROM "TRENDGRAPHICS" MONTHLY REPORTS
INDICATE THAT HOMES ARE SELLING FOR APPROX. 90% OF THE ASKING OR LISTING PRICES,
AND HAVE BEEN HOLDING THAT RATIO SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR.

Mon Jun 23 2008, 13:12

To add to the great answers bellow, Also a good consideration is based on how much the sellers own on the property. As an example, if their loan amount is $ 800 K, they won't be able to take an offer for less, as in order to close you need to pay off all the notes on the property.

Tue Apr 8 2008, 08:01

I think the simplest answer to your question is that the value of the house can be determined mainly by a comparison with other similar homes in the neighborhood that have sold in the past 6 months. In this changing market, you really can only go back that far. Also take into consideration what sets that home apart from the others that have sold as well as those that are currently for sale--does it have extras and are they extras that add value, such as a new kitchen, flooring, etc that others don't have. Make an offer based on what the existing homes sold comparison is--anything considerably less than that probably won't fly--anything far above that probably won't get a mortgage based on the bank's appraisal.

Tue Apr 8 2008, 06:44

Henrik, the only thing I'd like to add to Bill's and Don's very detailed and complete answers is one fact:

when sellers expect miracles and one agent doesn't perform it, they switch agents. That means the property gets relisted with a new number ("fake" relisting just to "refresh" a property is now a fineable offense in our database, the SE-Florida MLS).

That also means that a home could be on the market for say 2 years, but the current entry will show only a few weeks or months. Statistics may also only pick only that very recent listing number, so not all of the price drop is actually shown. It takes some individual digging to get the real picture for each property.

Please don't hesitate to email or call me if you are interested in Southeast Florida, and all the best to you,

Tobias Kaiser

Tue Apr 8 2008, 06:13

The decline in prices certainly should, and often does, show in the listings. However, the question of how negotiable the prices are is another question entirely. In some cases, sellers are inflexible; they'll expect to sell for 95% or more of the listing price. In other cases, sellers are very flexible, and may sell for 70%, 75%, or 80% of listing price. (Those are pretty much the extremes.)

As Bill suggests, it's often possible to make an educated guess about how negotiable a seller is. Sometimes, in fact, the listing itself indicates flexibility ("Owner willing to negotiate" or "Bring all offers.") In other cases, as Bill says, the reason for the sale or the circumstances surrounding it are useful to know. Is it an estate sale: owner died, the house is paid off, and the heirs just want to sell? They're likely to be negotiable. Divorce? Probably negotiable. "Tired landlord"? Negotiable. Someone who bought another house and now is paying two mortgages? Often negotiable.

If you'd like assistance in Northern Virginia (a suburb of Washington, D.C.), feel free to contact me.

Tue Apr 8 2008, 05:10

Hi Henrik,

Generally, sellers in today's market have taken into consideration these conditions and priced accordingly. Additionally, as they price the home they either are aware or are made aware buy the agent that "full price" offers are basically non-existant.

There are ways a buyer can generalize and gain an understanding of the sellers level of motivation: How many similar homes are currently on the market? Have home been selling in the neighborhood? How many days has the home been on the market? How many price reductions have there been? What did they pay for the home? Do we know why they are selling? A review of tax records can be helpful.....

Even from a distance, a skilled agent should be able to provide you with this level of service. We would be happy to support your interests for the south Florida.

Good luck,
The "Eckler Team"
Century 21 Almar and Assocaites
Venice, Fl 34285
ecklerteam@comcast.net
941-408-5363

Tue Apr 8 2008, 03:38