I tour homes in the East Bay every Monday and Thursday as part of special broker's open houses. It's a great opportunity to preview homes for clients, keep up with all the local inventory and most of all it's good to touch base with other agents, and talk about what we have all be experiencing with the market. AND WHAT A MARKET WE HAVE BEEN HAVING. In many places home prices are up to levels we haven't seen since 2005 -2007 and this is all being driven by the number of buyers competing for each home.
This type of competition can be very nerve wracking especially for buyers who do not have a lot of cash to put down and have to come in with loan and appraisal contingencies. Buyer's are FEELING like they can't compete with all cash buyers, and can't go as high as they need to, to get a house these days. The result is buyer fatigue, and buyers withdrawing from the home search. Experienced buyer's agent can make all the difference to buyer's who look at the low interest rates and are willing to keep moving forward with the home search. Seller's are not usually countering multiple offers, they are looking for a stand out that will bring them the best price sure, but above all one that will close escrow without much difficulty. Ask your agent what you can do to help make your offer stand out? and believe me buyers agent's are feeling this market's buyer fatigue acutely as well. Hang in there everybody!