Comments on: Are Sellers Out Of Touch With Pricing?

By: csyd

csyd — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:46:59 +0000

I think it both realtors and home owners are still thinking their house is worth too much (what they thought 2 years ago). I am trying to sell my house and my realtor was telling me it was worth $50k (13%) higher than we actually listed it at. We ultimately listed it lower and it’s still just sitting there.

By: John

John — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 12:54:30 +0000

Tony So,

The $12,000 a month rent does seem very high. Repairing older cars may be somewhat lucrative. The average car on the road today is nine-years old.

By: Tony So

Tony So — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:37:24 +0000

John, The Dry cleaner and auto shop is different property at different location different owner even located in the same N Dallas area, not a combined together property.

I still not believe if auto shop can really make that high profit to offset $12,000 monthly rent + NNN, employees with some Certified mechanic, manager or own salary, materials, work insurance? (NOTE: rent include the rights to use equipments)

My Korean friend has 6+ dry clean locations and he told me that recently he has been using his savings for many months to keep the business floated and hope that he can still survive. I hope they do because they are honest and hard workers, and “my Client )”.

TonySo@magnum2000.com

By: John

John — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:48:39 +0000

Tony So,

Dry cleaners and auto repair shops? Hmmmmmm!

An auto repair shop can make huge profits. I have been swindled and TAKEN TO THE CLEANERS so many times at auto repair shops.

By: Tony So

Tony So — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:34:07 +0000

I think most of the commercial real estate sellers are out of touch regarding to Asking Price.
In N Dallas, a Dry-cleaner bldg has been on market for few years, at least 2-3+ yrs, with price range $1.4M (as I remember). It has not sold for that few years before the financial/AIG/Bank bail out/housing crisis, they are still asking the same price.

Another N Dallas auto shop asking for sale price $1.6M, For Lease $12,000 per month (Yes, not 1,200 or type error). I am not sure how much profit auto shop can make, but $12,000/month Rent? Not even mentioned about NNN?
Nowadays, seller can ask whatever they want, but no one buys. It will be remain the same for a long long time.

Tony So
tonySo@magnum2000.com

By: John

John — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 19:53:32 +0000

I agree with Lydia as to her comments about land. I guess raw land prices have really come down in price, land without improvements, where the land is located on the outlying fringes of suburbia that previously had housing booms. So many of those outlying subdivisions are half-finished and are an eyesore.

I just discovered in my subdivision the percentage difference between the highest listing price and lowest listing price. There’s a 53 percent difference. I was really surprised to see that.

I think the home that’s priced 53 percent less even has more square-footage.

By: Lydia

Lydia — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 15:20:26 +0000

I’ve found more sellers willing to listen to my advice about pricing their homes to sell. Builders have not been able to get loans for spec homes for over a year now. So everything that has come up from the ground over the past year either started as a custom build or the builder used their own deep pockets or non-bank investors. So the value of the dirt is incredibly hard to determine. There is no demand for raw land right now and older homes that were once sold for land value are in ‘no man’s land’ by real estate standards.
I don’t think the house you refer to on your street is underpriced by any means.

By: mike

mike — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:53:45 +0000

The real estate market inside LBJ is just about as bad as it has ever been and it is going to get much worse. Real Estate is going to go to “cost.” Everything will go to “cost.” Anyone who has dry powder will be able to take advantage of what is getting ready to happen right before our eyes here in Dallas.

By: carissa

carissa — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:49:56 +0000

Do you think sellers are overpricing their homes? Yes, at least in our neighborhood.

By: in dallas

in dallas — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 19:07:18 +0000

It seems to be very difficult right now to come up with a realistic price. In older neighborhoods homes can vary drastically from tear down to mcmansion with everything in between. Add that to the fact that there are virtually no comps and it appears to be a shot in the dark. Most home sellers would rather take the shot on the higher side.

By: John

John — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 16:28:10 +0000

Yes, as a general rule I do think sellers have tended to overprice their homes. However, homes that are underpriced do sometimes raise suspicions as to why it’s priced low.

In my subdivision there’s no foreclosures, but a few homes are priced 30 percent more than others, and all of the homes basically have the same square-footage ( plus or minus 150 ) and features. They were all built by the same person.

By: Louis Cammarosano

Louis Cammarosano — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 15:14:24 +0000

I pulled some of the Texas data and will send Candy a more complete set next week.

For starters here is how Texans answered the following questions:

1. On average in the last year do you think your clients’ homes have: (national average in parenthesis)
Decreased in value 57% (90%)
Increased in Value 2% (2%)
Stayed the Same 41% (8%)

2.In the next six months, do you think values of homes in your market will

Decrease 25% (53%)
Increase 25% (11%)
Stay the same 50% (36%)

3. In your opinion, what impact will the Obama stimulus package have on home values in 2009?

Decrease home prices 13% (13%)
Increase home prices 8% (4%)
No impact 33% (45%)
Stabilize home prices 46% (38%)

Here is a link to the complete nationala and regional survey data
http://blog.homegain.com/polls/results-of-realtor-home-values-survey/

By: Louis Cammarosano

Louis Cammarosano — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 14:47:52 +0000

Hi Candy
I can get you the Texas breakdown

By: Will Gray

Will Gray — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 13:22:49 +0000

As one who is not in real estate, but is currently browsing the market in preparation for a purchase, too many homeowners/realtors are ignoring what is happening around them. I blame homeowners for not listening to their realtor far more than realtors, BTW. When I can look at three houses on the same block, similar features, etc. but there is a 30% price per square foot difference, somebody is ignoring the world around them… People really forget to leave their emotional attachments behind when it comes to selling their house. When the house has been on the market 6 months without a bite, time to drop the price (more than 2%!) and/or make some improvements.