Thursday, September 13, 2007

The Current Nashville Housing Market

Okay, a little view point from the streets. Being a realtor out on the streets and seeing everything that is going on from day to day my opinion on the housing market is quite a bit different than what you see on MSNBC. Is the market slow??? Compared to last year, maybe. But last year was a banner year, one for the record books. If we have a thriving market that sets records for sales, listings, and new homes, than ultimately the following year you could expect it to slow down a little bit. At least that tends to be the natural process.

In the Nashville Real Estate market, I am seeing a multitude of different situations. More listings on the market. Yes it is true, we have more listings and inventory on the market than we would like. This means two things; more room to negotiate as a buyer and more to choose from. This time last year, if you were a buyer in the Nashville market you found something that was interesting to you and you jumped on it. You presented a strong offer and made up your mind then and there that this house was the house for you. Now with there being more homes on the market, there is more competition for your business. Sellers are more likely to be reasonable about their pricing structure and more inclined to work with and negotiate with qualified buyers. Plus, this gives you as the buyer more time to think it over, pray about, and take your time on the purchase of your home.

Another issue that helps you the qualified buyer is this; the mortgage industry. With all of the problems being seen in the mortgage world, truly qualified buyers are like gold. When you find one as a seller, you hang on to it. There is nothing in the world more frustrating to a seller than tying up their property in escrow only to have the buyer's loan fall apart at the last minute. It waste time and money for everyone. So when a "good" buyer with a strong loan comes around, sellers will do whatever it takes to keep them around. That is a big plus for the buyer. And usually results in a better deal.

For my sellers, things have changed. The days of putting a sign in your yard and putting fliers out front are over. It takes a strong marketing campaign to bring traffic to your house. The number one thing and by far most important avenue for selling your house these days is the internet. Research from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) tell us that 85% of all home buyers in the market do their own searching on the internet, most of them even before calling a realtor to assist them. That means you have to have a very strong presence on the world wide web. Your realtor should be very tech saavy and know how to reach the target market for your home. For an example, refer to my website and look at my listings. http://www.nickwoodard.com/
To sell your home, the potential buyer needs to know what it feels like to live in your home before ever stepping foot in it. That is why I have embedded a video stream tour of the property directly on my website. Buyers that are looking in the area can click on your listing and have a video tour of your home to see what it looks like and how it feels to actually be inside your property without ever leaving their couch. The more information and "feeling" you can give your potential customer, the better chance you have of them setting up a showing to come and see your home.

If you have any questions or would like to speak with me about my marketing ideas for listing your home in and around the Nashville area, please give me a call. I would love to help. Buyers, it's a great time to start looking. Rates are going to be going up in the future and there are plenty of options out there. Call me if you would like to take a look at a few. In the mean time, take a look at http://www.nickwoodard.com/ and do some looking around for yourself. I hope that this blog has been educational and can be a source of help to you and your family.

Thanks for stopping by, may God bless you today and always!

God Bless,

Nick Woodard
Keller Williams Realty
615-566-9839
nick@nickwoodard.com


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