Do NOT talk about price, just your sincere interest to purchase because...
If any homeowner contacts you and inquires about price, my response would be: We will pay for an appraisal and base our offer on the appraised value (remind seller that they are welcome to hire their own appraiser). Obviously you will have to take a look at the property to make value/condition adjustments if warranted, and perform an inspection shortly afterwards.
Do not give away your motivation or be exuberant. I hope that a seller will call you soon.

Thanks for the advice berniek, Good idea about getting an appraisal. I just hope one of them calls!!! Even though neither one of these couples need the money, with the market the way it is here in upstate ny, and them being of the age in their 70's and their children all gone. I was hoping for a better response due to the easy sale for them...so Ill just wait and keep my eye out for any other sales signs...

I wouldn't be so sure that "neither one of these couples need the money..." You really can't know that for sure. I would follow up with a card in a month or so just to say you were still interested (without being a pest). I think older people might be wary of anything but a personal approach.
Good luck. I live in Upstate NY also and know how rooted people here are to their homes. One house, which just came on the market is 50 years old and the owners have lived there for 50 years. I am a realtor and am worried about the inside...Evidently, nothing has been updated. On the other hand, I really hope they have an estate sale.
Sorry to digress. Best of luck in your search.
Jo

I agree with jojoco, do not be a pest.

I'd called a painter when my dad's new house was ready to close. I needed to get estimates on painting the old house. One of the 1st people I called said he was interested in buying without an agent. Well shame on me for falling for it.

My dad was in the hospital with full blown cancer, here comes this guy saying he wants to buy. I tell my dad who gives me a price. This guy was fine with it until he speaks to his relatives a few months later, then, when he was supposed to meet us with a deposit never showed up, nor did he call. Just dropped off the face of the earth.

I can't tell you how much this guy put us out. We paid for an appraisal, not to mention the time we lost (almost 3 months) with listing it. Add to this the depression my dad suffered because he thought he wouldn't have to list it and could pay his HELOC.

Whatever you do, please make sure you are serious. When it comes time to talk money if one bites, please use an attorney. I wish we did.

Why not look into probate property? I subscribe to BobBruss's free newsletter. He is a real estate attorney who writes a column for the newspaper. This was published last month. Here is what he has to say about finding them.

"Would you be interested in acquiring a house, condo or other desirable real estate with little or no competition from other buyers? Or perhaps you are a real estate agent looking for an endless source of listings from sellers who are motivated to sell?

Often-overlooked sources of properties for sale, frequently at below-market prices, are probate properties.

Probate property bargains arise when the owner has died and the heirs don't want the property or the deceased left large debts, which must be paid from the sale of the property.

Usually, these properties become available after the deceased's estate has passed through the local probate court, frequently six months to a year or longer after the owner died. By then, the heirs and the estate executor or administrator are often anxious to close the estate, get their money and move on.

Probate is not necessary, however, if the deceased wisely either held title (a) in a revocable living trust, or (b) as joint tenants with right of survivorship (presuming there is a surviving joint tenant to receive the title).

WHY ACQUIRE A PROBATE PROPERTY? Each year there are approximately six million U.S. probate court proceedings. Of course, not all these probates involve real property. In some states, small estates below $100,000 are exempt from probate court proceedings.

The primary reason to acquire a probate property is to purchase at a below-market bargain price, either to live in as a principal residence or resell it for a profit.

Benefits of acquiring probate property include (a) the heirs and/or estate executor are usually motivated to sell to pay the deceased's bills and distribute the cash to the heirs; (b) limited competition from other buyers to drive the sales price up; and (c) because the heirs didn't pay anything for their inheritances, they usually don't demand top dollar (although some heirs can be very greedy).

Possible disadvantages of buying probate properties include (a) "as is" sales with no warranties and the estate doesn't have to pay for any repairs (although this is negotiable); (b) in some situations a property sale is contingent upon court confirmation, often increasing competition from other buyers; (c) many estates won't allow buyers to make purchase offers contingent on satisfactory professional inspections; and (d) some estate executors and administrators elect to offer the property at a public auction sales, thus driving the price up.

FINDING PROBATE PROPERTIES TAKES WORK. Real estate agents seeking probate listings, and buyers desiring to purchase probate properties must be diligent.

Following the daily newspaper obituary notices is a key method and then following up to check public ownership records to learn if the deceased owned real estate.

Another method is to read the local legal newspaper notices to creditors. Most states require estates to publish a legal notice giving creditors several months to submit their claims. This is an opportunity for realty agents and buyers to check with the estate attorney to see if any real estate will be sold by the estate."

Links that might be useful:
www.BobBruss.com
probateproperty.bobbruss.com/probateproperty/

roselvr, sorry you were blindsided from that painter. I have no intentions of playing head games with anyone. I am serious about purchasing a home in our current neighborhood.

jojoco, good luck on the new house! I think these 2 retirees are doing pretty good. One is a retired judge, the other couple are both retirees of being superintendents of schools and a he was a pro ball player ages ago...the only thing that makes me think they might move at somepoint is that they would want to downsize, pay less taxes and be closer to their children and take this opportunity without the hassel of having open houses and trying to find a buyer that likes the house and qualifies for the loan etc...here in amsterdam ny the taxes keep going up and up and the prices of the homes do not seem to be going up much at all. If your not from here, theres really no attraction for anyone to ever move here..

This is a good thread.

We get communications from realtors once in a while. We are waterfront and it it rarely comes up for sale. So they always communicate to us when they have interested waterfront buyers just in case we are considering a move.

Someday we may bite.

roselvr, sorry you were blindsided from that painter. I have no intentions of playing head games with anyone. I am serious about purchasing a home in our current neighborhood.

I'm sure karma will eventually get him.

What I would do is to start thinking about what their houses are worth in case one does bite. I think the painter thought he'd get the house a lot cheaper, my dad originally wanted $20,000 more. The seller is going to have a number in their head, it has to be worth while for them to pack up and move. They need to put a dollar amount to that. If you can do your homework, figuring out what it could sell for, then something on top of that so that they're happy, you just might get one.

As I said, make sure you do this through an attorney. It will protect both parties. It will show the potential seller that you are serious. If you do follow up with a note like jojo said, maybe putting a price on paper would seal the deal?

Suggestion--Don't just target the folks in their 70's and up. My husband just hit 50 but we are looking to downsize. We would love to stay near our current location. We have one of the larger homes in our neighborhood with some goodies like a huge master suite and kitchen (due to po's big addition) that are usually found in newer homes. Before listing we plan to pass out information in our neighborhood and hold an open house hoping that someone would like to "move up". This happened just down the street last year, in fact the owner told me they had 3 neighborhood couples interested just thru word of mouth. Hope I'm as lucky. Our problem is finding something we want to move into or a lot to build on (very scarce). I suggest you slip a note to anyone with no kids in k-12 and any houses you just really like--never know what their plans are.

mnzinnia,

How I wish you were in my neighborhood!!!! But actually we did put the letters in all the homes we are interested in, there are not many homes at all that have a large yard and a home with 3500 sq ft + in my area. Most homes are 2500 sq ft with a 5000 to 7000 sq ft lot. Slim pickins around here...