QUESTION
why are a lot of the houses being held above asking price ? A lot of the houses we found are being held above asking price in hopes of driving the pri
Asked on Nov 29th, 2011 on Real Estate - Alabama
More details to this question:
What I mean is my husband and i found two homes we were interested in but our agent advised us to offer a slightly lower price toward the purchase, during that time offers were made for, and above the asking price and they are still holding out for the highest bidder .. the home was not listed as an auction so i do not understand how they can keep driving the price up when it it is listed for sale at a certain price . On the other house we were told the seller was asking 10,000 cash on a 12,000 dollar sales price (cash sale) however, their was a 11,000 dollar offer, verbal agreement) from another party, but they were not sure they could come up with the cash money to secure the deal , now instead of 10,000 cash they want 12,000 cash . None of these houses are listed as auctions yet it seems they are being sold in such a manner that says other wise . I do not understand should it not be first come first serve if the buyer is willing to pay the asking price ? is this legal ?
1 ANSWER
Real Estate Law Attorney serving Anniston, AL
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Isom Stanko & Senter, LLC
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Since I don't know the specific facts that are in play, let me just give you some basic information that is probably at work here.
First, keep in mind that the property in question belongs to the "owner" whoever that is -- whether an individual or a bank that foreclosed on it. The owner cannot be forced to sell for any given price unless he has signed a valid written contract. That means the seller can change his mind about the price that he is willing to accept.
Keep in mind also that the housing market is very, very weak. Because there are so many houses on the market due to foreclosures, the value of virtually all houses have declined. Many people who don't want to sell their homes are finding that, because of the market decline, they now owe more on their mortgage than the house is presently worth. Property owners who wish to sell (or who are being forced for some reason to sell), very often find themselves trying to decide just how much they can afford to lose on a deal. It isn't so much -- in today's market -- that seller's are trying to make more money; I think they are often trying to reduce their losses.
You have described a situation where the real estate agents
Answered on Dec 01st, 2011 at 7:09 PM