Buyer agent-eye view: February 2010
What's in my face, and therefore in my eyes, this month is open house crowds. I have been tracking the heavily trafficked open houses, when I have been there to see them with my own eyes. These open houses were in Cambridge, Somerville, Arlington, Medford, Waltham, Belmont, Natick and Lexington.
This is my count for February 2010:
Total open houses that I set foot into: 29
Total busy open houses attended: 18
Number under agreement or offer accepted: 11
Number still active (some had offers which fell through): 4
Number withdrawn or canceled: 3
Total not-busy open houses attended: 11
Number under agreement or offer accepted: 6
Number still active (some had offers which fell through): 5
Number withdrawn or canceled: 0
This month, the busy open houses are faring a little better than 50:50 for quick sales. So are the quieter open houses. Most buyers and sellers believe that if a lot of people see a house, it will sell. This winter’s open houses are showing that this is not necessarily the case. A busy open house does not necessarily yield a quick and stable sale. The quieter open houses are faring about as well.
I reiterate the advice that I regularly give: take your time. There are a lot of houses in the Commonwealth, and it is unlikely that there is only one that suits your needs. When you are faced with making a multi-hundred-thousand dollar decision in 24 hours, you cannot make a good decision without pre-deciding a number of factors and doing the rest of your due diligence in a hurry.
Please look before you leap and let the tax credit be damned.
Am I the only fisch swimming against the tide?
