brad

The seller may have accepted the offer, but is waiting for bank approval. (The Realtor would not accept unless they were the seller.)

You need to find out exactly where the offer is before you commit money and effort towards inspections and appraisals. - Wed May 14 2008, 09:53

The more I read of his venture to buy a home, the more I am struck by two thoughts.

1) You spent so much time and effort on this that you would have saved by using a good Realtor. Reading your post, it appears you spent at least 108 hours just on the buying transaction of the home. Thats only 2 hours a week. (I know the selling side only took 2 hours of marketing from your post.)

2) You apparently have the makings of a good Realtor. Maybe you should use your experience and knowledge to change everything for the better. With the amount of dedication you have, 6% would be low amount to charge. - Tue May 13 2008, 17:25

Yes, the Internet makes certain information easier to communicate. However, Zillow, Craigslist and Trulia are not the MLS. The MLS has far more data, is better regulated and has a huge group of experienced professionals using it. My clients use me to find out the details and help them make decisions. They cannot, yet, use the other marketing tools for this.

Focusing on just one home does not automatically mean you saved the 3%. Without neighborhood statistics and experience to interpret them, you may have cost yourself more. I know that you have a strong opinion about this, but others may well want the peace of mind that comes with objective information. Maybe that 3% was real savings for you, maybe not.

Many of us have changed our models. The agent you used to help sell your home, and the one that brought a buyer probably have very unique service and compensation structures. If you interview different agents, you will be surprised at how we adapt.

For example, I offer half of the buyers commission back at closing in certain areas that I service. I still provide the full service levels, but at half the cost. So you would have paid 1.5% for the negotiation skills, the area knowledge and the complete understanding of what that home should be worth in that market. It is very likely that amount would have saved you even more. - Tue May 13 2008, 09:56

It depends upon so many variables. What is owed? What is the banks position? Are they aggressive in this area because of other foreclosures? Do they have other offers? And about 500 more that you can't control.

The bank will take some time to answer. Wait and see! - Tue May 13 2008, 10:03

This depends so much on where and what you are buying. In some areas near me, each neighborhood is different. In many areas near me, pending and closed sales are up. Values are up. Foreclosures are still there, but they are selling with multiple offers. Certain townhome designs are completely stagnant. Single car garages in the suburbs aren't selling. And so on.

So, putting this into one thread goes against the old location, location, location mantra.

Talk to an experienced professional in the area you care about for the best answers. - Tue May 13 2008, 09:18