Lehigh Valley Real Estate Blog, Home Buying & Selling Information

Lehigh Valley Real Estate and Home Sale Market

The other day an agent shared an email with me from a possible home buyer looking to purchase in the Lehigh Valley. The home buyer stated that he was watching the real estate market crash every day and he was waiting for the "idiotic bubble" to burst. He indicated he would wait a year or two until that happens.

Is this buyer making a mistake? Is the Lehigh Valley housing market crashing?

There is no doubt that the Lehigh Valley real estate market is slow right now but can it be compared to what we hear about the Florida and California markets? Definitely not.

A lot of home sellers are still attempting to price their houses higher than the market is willing to bear. In a slow market, this is a crucial mistake. As a result, REALTOR's are out there daily trying to educate the sellers about the market and correct pricing.

Home buyers, reading the news, think they can make ridiculous offers and can't understand why the sellers are rejecting the offers. A few examples of recent offers:

House listed for $130,000 - Buyer wants to offer $95,000 - house went under agreement for $115,000
House listed for $225,000 - Buyer initially wants to offer $180,000, finally offers $210,000 - Rejected
House listed for $440,000 - Buyer offers $400,000 - house was on the market almost a year - ended up going under agreement for $415,000 after a week of negotiations
House listed for $199,900 - offer accepted for $190,000
House listed for $370,000 - multiple bids - offer accepted for $365,000
House listed for $194,000 - multiple bids - offer accepted for $188,000

The above is just an example of what is going on in the valley between home buyers and home sellers.

Since homes are staying on the market longer, there are definitely sellers that have more motivation to sell and an offer that may have been out-right rejected a year ago may be considered and negotiated rather than rejected. Can the buyer get a good deal? In some cases "yes" but they can't "steal" the house.

With interest rates still relatively low and new construction offering a lot of incentives now may be a great time to purchase.

Lehigh Valley - North Bethlehem Home for Sale

This is the house you've been waiting for! Hardwood floors welcome you into this 2100 square foot 4 bedroom 1 and 1/2 bath home. Central air keeps you cool during the hot summer months and a wood fireplace in the living room keeps you cozy during the winter. The completely remodeled 3rd floor (with cable and phone) provides the 4th bedroom and the office, which can also be used as a 5th bedroom. New windows, gutters, hot water heater, furnace, and patio add to the appeal. The washer, dryer, and refrigerator are included to complete the package.

For more information visit: 503 E. North Street at LehighValleyHomesOnline.com

Sellers Assist and Appraisals with Lehigh Valley Homes

Why won't the seller accept my offer that includes a request for Sellers Assist?

Sellers Assist, sometimes called Sellers Concession, is a way for a buyer to offer more for a house and then get that extra money back to help with closing costs.

For instance, if a buyer wanted to purchase a house for $100,000, the buyer could offer $105,000 for the house with the condition that the extra $5,000 would get used to assist with the closing costs.

Why would a seller turn this down? What does the seller care about the amount of the Buyer's mortgage?

The problem is that the house must appraise for the full purchase price. In the above situation, the house must appraise at $105,000 even though the home seller is only getting $100,000.

If the house is already priced high, then adding Sellers Assist to the offer may put the house in the gray area as far as the appraisal is concerned. The seller may not want to take the risk that it won't appraise.