Right now the market is soft. If you are expecting big returns, then the answer is no, don't sell right now. If you can find the right realtor that can help make the market work for you instead of against you, (and your willing to take the chance of a loss) then go ahead and sell. Ultimately, a transaction is based solely on the lowest price a seller is willing to accept and the highest price a buyer is willing to pay.

Thu May 8 2008, 13:27

Generally, holding a property for 5-10 years is always a winner for good equity. If you don't have to sell but want to upgrade, you may try renting your current property while you upgrade to a new one. As you bought in Oct. 07 I don't know that you would be able to cash flow it if you rented it. It is difficult when you must sell, which may be your case... there are only a few options if you happen to owe more than it is worth. 1. Hold on the the home until the market turns around, 2. Sell it and come up with the difference (if you can at closing). 3. Sell the property on a Short Sale with the bank. These options are listed respectively to your best interests.

Thu May 8 2008, 13:11

First, don't sell you own judgment short. With all the negative news going on about the real estate market, it's certainly natural to have buyers remorse but keep a few things in mind. A lot of the news you and everyone else are seeing is more about what is going on nationally than locally where we have a low unemployment rate (about 3.2 percent) and approximately 40,000 jobs being produced annually.

As I said in an earlier answer to someone expressing a similar concern but who bought in '04, there are a lot of variables that determine the curent and future value of your home. One of those is where it is located in Alexandria as some areas appear to already have started recovering from the downtrend in prices while its clear that others, especially in areas that have been overbuilt, will see further depreciation before things begin to improve.

If your reason for buying your placed was because it was the nicest you saw in the area you were interested in, chances are good that, when you do sell it in the future, other potential buyers will feel the same as you did when you bought (given that you keep up its condition and and make any upgrades necessary to be competitive in the market when you do sell).

Just don't panic and sell when you don't have to. Again, if you have your place in good condition when it's time to sell, you'll probably experience what clients of mine who bought a small single family home through me four years ago did recently when they needed to sell to move overseas. Their home was located in a neighborhood where several homes had gone into foreclosure but, because they had taken the time to do some upgrades and we did a few others to get it ready for the market, we were able to sell their home in under three weeks at a good price that was significantly over what other homes in the neigborhood were listed for but was still, considering condtion compared to tose other homes, very realistic.

If only to give yourself peace of mind or have a better idea of what situation you are in with your home, I'd suggest that, whether me, one of the other agents who has answered you her or the agent who helped you buy your home, contact someone to get an idea of how sales in your community have been going. It would be much better to be armed with some information than to worry about whether you made a good decision in buying a home.

Mon Apr 21 2008, 17:11

If you can stay in your home for at least 3, if not 5 years, then don't sell now. The market should go sideways for about 3 to 5 years before rebounding.

If you think you'll have to move out within the next 3 years, then you may want to sell now due to tightening lending guidelines (see link below) and in case the market goes down a bit more.

Fri Apr 11 2008, 14:53

I think a lot of buyers buy too much house, to store all their possessions or to keep up with the current American Dream. With a bigger home,sometimes come bigger headaches, so just be careful what you wish for. If you do move up you may/should more than make up for any loss on the current house with the savings on the new one.

Fri Apr 11 2008, 13:45

Don't sell now unless you have to. Yes, if you paid roughly the same that was paid for it in 2005, you may have overpaid a bit. And it's possible (likely) that prices will slip some more. But, depending on where in Alexandria you are, prices are holding up reasonably well. You certainly won't take the same hit as if you'd purchased in Woodbridge, or Ashburn, or Manassas, or even Centreville. Inside the Beltway is pretty stable, and so are the areas within a couple of miles outside.

Again, not knowing where you bought or what you paid, I can't say with much certainty, but if you sold now you'd likely be taking a loss. Your question pretty much is: Do I cut my losses now, or face greater losses in the future? That depends in part on what your needs are, and it's helpful that you explained that you'll really want to move by 2011.

No one has a crystal ball, but I expect prices to be somewhat higher (not by a whole lot, necessarily) by 2011. So, you can sell now and take a moderate (hopefully that's all), pretty certain loss now, or wait 3 years with a realistic expectation that at that time either you may come out somewhat ahead or at least reduce the amount of your loss. And, incidentally, the transaction costs of selling may exceed 6%. Realtor fees are negotiable, of course, but if the 6% was a reference to the Realtor fees, there are other fees and expenses involved in selling.

In the meantime, enjoy the place you purchased. It apparently is nice ("the nicest place I saw"), and you don't indicate you've got financial problems that would prompt you to sell. Buyer's remorse is pretty normal, even when the market isn't as soft as it is now. And you can find posts here and elsewhere that range from the strongly optimistic (look for anyone quoting the National Association of Realtors) to absolute doom and gloom.

As I said, overall, I'd pick a projection somewhere about in the middle. And specifically for Alexandria...with the stable areas around Del Ray, all the growth around the Eisenhower Metro stop, the new construction elsewhere, the BRAC realignment not too far south, the stability of the federal government and associations as employers...you picked a good area to buy in.

Hang in there. You'll do fine.

Fri Apr 11 2008, 13:34

I think you should stick it out as long as you can. If you put it on the market now you may lose money.

Fri Apr 11 2008, 13:19