Ed,
Yes there are some bargain shoppers out there. It does not mean that they get that price. Usually all they end up doing is insulting the seller and they do not even get a counter offer. Of course there are always the homeowners that ask too much for a home. By law no matter what we show in the way of CMA's or how much we explain to a homeowner about the market if they tell us to list for a price that is $30,000 to $50,000 too high then we have to do it. The alternative is to walk away from the listing which is not a bad idea sometimes. We are graded on our stats like our own personal days on market average for the homes we have sold.
I guess it comes down to the people selling the home. I have a listing now that the seller and I worked for awhile on what to charge. We came up with a price just below market value and offered some incentives if the offer is acceptable to us. We put it on the market last week and it has been shown to alot of different buyers and I have one offer on the table already. So, I guess to put it simply you can price it correctly and sell it with your pick of the many buyers out there, or you can price it too high and get the occasional nibble and then offers that are way below your asking price (but, they may be inline with the actual market value).
So yes there are some buyers out there just fishing and thinking they can get a great deal if someone is desperate enough. That will be true in any market though. So get a buyers agent and have them run a market analysis of any home you are looking at. Then have them pull the liens and see what the borrowed and figure out about how much they owe. Try to get as much information as possible. Then work with your agent and make the offer you feel comfortable with.

Hope this helps
Happy house hunting

Larry Story
Coldwell Banker Triad

Ed,

I think it depends on your local market. Here in Greensboro, NC we are experiencing a lot of inventory out there and days on market are somewhat longer than they use to be, but we have not seen the dramatic redution in prices as some areas have. Our market here is still moving along . I have noticed a lot more homes are being priced right to start so they are not coming down off the prices much. A buyer may in some cases offer that much lower, but most sellers even in this market would not accept it or would counter. Just be careful you don't offer too low if that is your plan and insult the seller to where they won't even negotiate with you. Of course many things could influence that such as the properties location, it's condition such as does it need a lot of work. Also what is the market doing in that area, what has the sold comparables gone for, there can be a whole set of questions and conditions depending on each individual property. Hope this help some and if I can be of any other assistance please don't hesitate to contact me.

Bridget Laszlo
bridget.laszlo@coldwellbanker.com

As a buyer you are making an offer what represents value of that property to you and the same is determined by many factors not only on how long that home has been on the market. Some of the sellers are in distress and will consider anything but not that you are also risking to offend seller and if you really like that property that isn’t very best thing. You buyer agent should be able to advise you more on this as well as get you all the information’s you might need when deciding on how much to offer. Good luck with your purchase and yes it is great time to buy!

Although Charlotte continues to be in a positively growing market, our home sales prices have seen a slight restructuring. Many homes which were placed on the market some time ago may have been priced according to comps that were current at the time and based on our economy growth. Over the past few months, some listings have had to be re-comped and adjusted based on the current market. This doesn't necessarily mean they were over priced when listed, it just means they are lining up with our current market values. Remember, the value of a home is only what a buyer ultimately pays on a given day. Please feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance or clarify anything. Good luck!