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Buying and Selling Homes

Sold in less than a week

11 years ago

My 39 year old raised ranch hit the MLS last Thursday morning and I received an offer last evening although I still don't know for how much. Meeting with realtor this afternoon. The house is in turnkey condition with everything from infrastructure to kitchen and baths being replaced or updated. Now only to find someplace to move. At 70 years of age I just couldn't deal with the house anymore.

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Comments (13)

weedyacres
11 years ago
Be careful about counting your chickens, since you don't even have the offer in hand yet. It could be a horrible low-ball. I hope it's not, but there are so many horror stories out there lately, there's a lot between here and "sold."

Good luck, and I hope you do in fact sell it soon.
mgmsrk
11 years ago
I hope all goes smoothly but I would also caution. Before you move out or sign a lease to someplace new to live make sure it is after the inspection AND the buyers have provided you with a COMMITMENT to lend from the bank, not just a pre approval letter.

Last year a friend got a call 3 days before her closing from her real-estate agent letting her know that the people who wanted to buy her house were denied the mortgage. She had her stuff out, a 1 year lease signed on a new apartment. It was no fun, it did work out for her but only because the buyers parents stepped in and took out the loan, most would not do that.
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hoboken - I think countering is actually a good idea for more than just the obvious reason of getting a higher price. I think it shows the buyer that you value your home and it doesn't make you look so desperate. Sometimes when a buyer's offer is accepted off the bat they start to wonder if they offered too much. A reasonable counter makes both the buyer and the seller feel like a good compromise has been met if they come to agreement. I think 'meeting in the middle' is a great response. You may not get them to say yes, but it is a very nice and friendly response and not one that would make a buyer feel that the seller isn't serious and would walk away. At least not most buyers! I would be careful with countering too high and saying no to too much, but I think that giving a good counter offer in response to an initial offer is something that can actually strenthen a transaction. This is my EXACT line of thinking on all counts. Glad to know I'm not crazy. Trust me, I'm feeling like I am some days. We don't want to appear to be desperate or a doormat. Accepting whatever they offer without countering could make them feel like they offered too much and then give them the idea to try to get further reductions after the inspection. Julie Sparksals, sorry to say it, but if you have only had 2 showings in the last 25 days, with the competition across the way you described, I think you should drop that price to 225 fast! And before the agent tour! That's the perfect time to snag some agents shopping for their current clients. You need something enticing to get buyers in the door and your listing/photos aren't doing it. Out of curiosity, where do you get the $225K number? I think the areas on the other side of I-10 are definitely not as desirable and as mentioned in another thread, people are often settling for houses that have less ammenities to get the deal, without thinking about long term consequences of buying in an area that will ultimately cost them more in landscaping, fence building, poor school district etc. Add to it such a large inventory over there and a realtor can take buyers shopping and usually find a house in one or two days. There are 60 homes for sale in a small area, but much larger than ours. Our area is small - about 200 homes with 10 on the market ranging from foreclosures to those needing tonnes of TLC and updates. It's a tough pill to swallow and I do have to talk to the realtor about whether the price drop will be best prior to the AO or not. I really do trust her experience and I think my apprehension is more stress and frustration. Price drop inevitable. To 225K, not so sure. That's what we were hoping to get and I was thinking of dropping to $230K. *sigh*
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The painters are nearly finished at our former home; rainy weather delayed the exterior trim repainting. Our RE agent has arranged for his own housekeeper to clean the house tomorrow, and the photographer will take pictures next week. An open house will be held this weekend, and probably most weekends until the house sells. The builder of the new houses in the neighborhood has dropped prices a little, but we will still be priced below the competition. Activity has picked up in the last few weeks, so we're cautiously optimistic. On the medical front, the news isn't quite so good as the doctors now think another operation is unavoidable, but our child isn't yet healthy enough to withstand surgery. More than ever I am glad we moved, since the new house is a better place in which to recuperate because it has a second bedroom & bathroom on the main floor as well as some beautiful views from the patio. We're hoping that our former home sells quickly, but are now prepared to handle both mortgage payments for up to a year (please don't let it be that long!) I admit that it hurt to see the settlement estimate and to realize how much we'll lose, but it's still the right thing to do. We also have a much smaller house in another city that will go on the market this summer, once it's vacated by our other child. Today I received the good news that the painters working on our former home are willing to travel to the other house once it's empty to repaint it in preparation for selling. I estimate that we can repaint the interior walls (I can just touch up the trim), recarpet (4 smallish rooms), and do some other updating for about 1% of our expected sales price. It's in a pretty good market, and I think that house should sell quickly. By the end of the year we hope to be down to one house and to have reduced our debt to less than half its value. More importantly, I hope that by mid-year there will be no more need for home health care and we can relax and enjoy the new house. The new "normal" will be a lot different than before, but maybe we'll have gotten to the point where dh & I can handle things on our own. Thanks again for your good wishes.
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krissie55
11 years ago
Please take it slow, do not count your chickens before they hatch!!

I am in the process of selling a house, closing date has been changed 3 times, extensions were needed for various reasons by the lender for the buyer's FHA loan. The afternoon before the last closing date the lender decided they needed certified proof of buyer's salary from the IRS. They had 45 days to do this prior to closing. Next closing date is 3 weeks in the future in hopes the IRS will respond within that time frame.

If the buyer of your house is using a VA or FHA loan, sit tight, it is going to be a long drawn out process after you have a signed contract in hand.
maddielee
11 years ago
BUT...it might be a smooth transaction. We had an offer on a house we sold 4 hours after it went on MLS. Good contract within 24 hours. A Closing with no problems.

Good sales do happen! Good luck!

ML
hfawn
11 years ago
Any updates? I've been wondering how it's been going for you.
fran1523
Original Author
11 years ago
Turns out, the buyers couldn't get enough $$ and the sale fell through. We had another open house a week later and I got another offer for $15K more and the buyer is pre-approved for plenty of money. So all seems to be working out for the best. Thanks for the interest.
cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
11 years ago
"BUT...it might be a smooth transaction. We had an offer on a house we sold 4 hours after it went on MLS. Good contract within 24 hours. A Closing with no problems. "

Seems it is either feast or famine, LOL.

My Mom has a contract on a house that had three offers on its first day on MLS. The only reason she got there first is that it is in my neighborhood and I saw them physically put the sign up. We called before it showed up on MLS and ours was the first viewing on the first day it was listed. Obviously the other two shoppers were on the ball as well.
It was a strong cash offer so hopefully no issues :)
fran1523
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks for the optimism. We are currently waiting for the bank appraisal. I have a buying horror story to tell but will start a seperate post.
cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
11 years ago
Things go well all the time- people just don't post smooth sailing stories.
They actually moved up my Mom's closing and it took place last week.
So listed on MLS on June 11th and closed on June 29th.
Hopefully when we get her current home ready to list it will go half as well.
fran1523
Original Author
11 years ago
I'm closing on this house July 31st because everything is done. I think 10 weeks from open house to closing is pretty darn good.
melody-s
11 years ago
Congrats on selling your home. Depending on location things do seem to be looking up.
cearbhaill (zone 6b Eastern Kentucky)
11 years ago
My mom put her offer in on June 11 and closed on June 29.
It was fast!!
yogastef
11 years ago
That's fantastic! Congratulations.

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