Hanleigh and others say buyers should make the same price checks a seller is supposed to make in a tight market to make sure they list with an accurate price. Experts say buyers should check the most recent comparables, keep track of the sale price range for the street and immediate neighborhood where they are shopping, use the local newspaper to monitor asking prices and visit open houses to learn what conditions warrant certain prices. It doesn't matter what the seller's neighbor sold their house for three months ago. Also, buyers should consider buying the least expensive house on the best block, they should try to buy into a community's least expensive neighborhood or move into a city's least expensive community. The cheapest home in a neighborhood in buyer's market will eventually give you the greatest return on your investment.
History reveals, even in a market headed for the doldrums, things eventually turn up.
What buyers should know, is that they can purchase a home at a price they can afford with little or no competition from other buyers. CA-based Alhouse King Realty Inc. Experts also advise buyers not to insult sellers with low ball offers, but buyers should recognize that many sellers are ready to make a deal. As a lender, I see buyers whose money for down payment and closing costs has been drastically reduced by the slump in the stock market. After all, lenders will lend 90 percent or 95 percent of the purchase price. For more articles by Broderick Perkins, please press here .