Patric has had good advice, Take a loss or Wait. That's the only real options in this market. It is sad to say this but, you may be better of waiting to sell unless you have sell.

I have home in Chandler, AZ 85249-7397. I can exchange it for full price if you have interest. Call me at 770-456-5929

Dear KN Seller
First of all, I wouild ask you why you are moving? Being a "have to sell now" seller is NOT in your best interest. Under the best of circumstances purchasing a home and selling it within a year or too rarely makes financial sense. This is not like a stock, jewelery, or some other commodity. Selling and buying homes are complex transactions.

Second, I like your request for your options.
1. Do you absolutely HAVE TO MOVE? I don't know what the compelling reason might be, however my standard advice would be not to move unless you have absolutely no other option because in this market you are going to pay a lot of money (probably MORE than you are thinking). Unless you've got money to burn, I would not do it.
2. If you absolutely have to move to one of the cities you mentioned, then I would look into renting the property. The primary issue in your market is that there is a glut of inventory. Talk with a Realtor about the market, look at possible rental scenarios, and talk with a CPA about the tax consequences.

By renting you turn your property into an investment, so costs become expenses, which become tax deductions. Also, the real estate market, like any market, goes up and down. In the LONG TERM you will come out ahead.

So crunch the numbers with a CPA. We wife and I became accidental investors and it was a great experience.

Unfortunately, if you have only lived in your home 11 months, in this market you're losing equity. What happened? Job change? Life change? You will only be able to get what the market is paying now for homes of your type, which may involve your walking away in debt.

Great question. One that many are asking right now. To walk away because your homes value may have temporarily dropped would be a huge mistake (If that were the only reason). Your home is not primarily an investment. It is your portion of the world. One that you own, live your life, maybe raise a family or live with your partner and share life experiences with. It is your own sanctuary and should be viewed as an investment secondary. Like stocks and other investments, values will rise and fall. If you are forced to move due to a job relocation or family matter, talk with your builder. If they are building homes in the place where you intend on moving to, they may be willing to trade for another home. This can work very well if you had also used the builders financing. Wont work in every case but, worth asking about. If you want to move for the sake of moving....stay put and try to stop worrying about the market. You could probably use that time and energy in much better places. Think about the homeless in our society....It will seem trivial to worry about how home prices have...or might drop when you consider that there are many with no home to go to. Hang in there!

Walker Group - no offense intended, but saying, "You and your Realtor will have to come up with incentives such as buyers broker commission since the builders most likely offer big $$$ I know that sounds terrible, but truth for a lot of the knuckleheads in the business. Also, come up with incentives for buyers. Find out what the builder is offering and try to top it." really doesn't work in the Phoenix area market.

Many builders are offering 6, 8 even 10 and 12% co-brokes. It's rather difficult for an individual to compete with that.

Topping builders incentives in the $80K range is tough too.

Patrick's advice (the only answer from a local agent), though probably not what you wanted to hear, is spot on. Maricopa is crazy right now. We recently had a listing there. Standing in the driveway you could see 8 for sale signs at other homes. There are currently 1,119 homes listed for sale in Maricopa. In October, there were 62 sales. That's an 18 month supply of homes.

Outlying areas like QC and Maricopa are getting hammered.

Zillow bases valuations on sales. Chiefly through the county recorders office and is often months behind. There are also many factors in can not consider. However, if you bought 11 months ago, it is quite likely you are "upside down" and that plus costs will put you well outside your $15K loss parameter.

It is very difficult to compete if not impossible with a builder who is still building if you want to sell.

If you do not need to sell don't. Is it possible to rent if out if you need to move?

You can be creative and compete against your builder but it will be very difficult.

I agree, Zillow is not reliable.

You and your Realtor will have to come up with incentives, such as buyers broker commission since the builders most likely offer big $$$ I know that sounds terrible, but truth for a lot of the knuckleheads in the business. Also, come up with incentives for buyers. Find out what the builder is offering and try to top it.
Lastly, this is buyers market if you don't have to sell don't.

You are going to need a very creative and talented real estate broker. Find one with a good reputation.
Susan Walker

Sorry KNseller,

My advise to you is don't pay attention to Zillow.

You actually may find someone in Maricopa who wants to "trade", However your problems will only be worse out there.

You wont find a trade for Gilbert, or Chandler.

Laveen vs. Q.C. almost a wash. You have a slightly better location.

Options #1. Sell and loose 20-30% right now.
Option #2. Rent out your home, probably for a monthly loss.
Option #3. Stick it out 3 years, probably break even.

I pick door number 3

11 months ago, makes me wonder if you have a adjustable "Bomb" Mortgage. If so start planning now for any adjustments.

Good Luck
Patrick Mahony

Hello KNseller. What you describe (i.e., developer selling same model for less) is unfortunately happening all too often across the country, which makes it really difficult for those who are trying to resell. Many buyers of new homes do not think about that when they buy and they don't research what the developers sale history is before they enter a contract. That's where a good buyer's agent can help, but many buyers of new homes do not have the benefit of an independent buyer's agent. They buy through the developers sales office and don't know what questions to ask.

Based on what you describe in your post, the Zillow estimate is too high, which does not come as a surprise because the data used by Zillow may not include the most recent sales data.

Does this developer have homes in the areas that you would prefer. You may want to get the word out that you'd like to trade. I think your chances of finding someone who wants to trade are probably slim, but it does not hurt. You could also put an ad on craigslist. It's free and can't hurt. Good luck.

Sorry to hear that KNSeller,

You unfortunately are in a position alot of other homebuyers are in who have bought new in areas such as arizona or Las Vegas. WIth builders slashing prices, or offering incentives, and rate buydowns. They are making it extremely difficult to compete, if you have to sell the home.

Here is a good article on the problem. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21151323/

I also would not take your Zillow estimate as a concrete value. Your best bet is talk to a realtor and ask what a real value is based on actual MLS data. You also need to make sure you check your loans and see if there are any pre-pay penalties, as well as builder regulations about selling early.

Good Luck.