Zillow Advice: Home Buying - Buyers, why do you play hard to get?

pardon the glitch and the ...

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:50:00 GMT

pardon the glitch and the typos.

Don't give the typical "interest rates are lower!" "Now is the time to buy!" lines. Most people wish to own their own homes. What they need is good information, especially if they are first-time buyers.

pardonthe

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:48:00 GMT

pardon

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pardon

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:48:00 GMT

pardon

I'm long-winded so one more ...

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:47:00 GMT

I'm long-winded so one more thing: If you're fascinated with sales and not houses, go into retail.

A good agent is fascinated by real estate. and will love talking about which how sold for how much, and which neighborhood is hottest, and how much it costs to gut a half bath in a renovation last year, and if it costs more or less this year. It astounds me how LITTLE agents know when asked routeine questions about renovations, typical lifetimes of heating furnaces and such.

Palm, Welcome to the ...

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:38:00 GMT

Palm,

Welcome to the board.

Tiny V,

I'n not a buyer, but I've been a buyer in the past who wanted to look around for a bit, and was not prepared to make an offer. I wanted to know if my expectations about price and square footage were accurate. It's similar to buying a car. I look at several manufacturers - Toyota, Honda, Ford etdc - before I narrow down my selections of models. I would look on Sundays when the salesmen and saleswomen weren't around.

If you wish to squeeze your way into the process, then carry around a sample of homes in various price ranges. Don't offer to be their agent, but hand over the list of homes with photos and prices, and say that if they're going to be checking out houses, that "this one's cute... that the other one has a floor plan that will be great for some families, not so great for others" and give them information. Tell them that the school district lines drive the real estate costs and values in your city if that's true - or if not, what beyond oceanfront or mountaintop brings in a premium. In other words, forget the sales pitch and chat like a friend gossiping about real estate in general, that is, should you meet the buyers at an open house.

If they think you know the market, and trust you because you don't seem desperate, that will help.

career transition point

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:22:00 GMT

career transition point

seems that tiny is really ...

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:21:00 GMT

seems that tiny is really a great person who is wasting her time on our buyers' interest

i am a chinese in hangzhou,chinahomeprices ...

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:20:00 GMT

i am a chinese in hangzhou,china

homeprices here is at the start point of plummet

Must resist brain killing ...

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:20:00 GMT

Must resist brain killing propaganda of Realtors... must resist, must save brain.... must...

I'm still waiting for that ...

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:24:00 GMT

I'm still waiting for that "help"... Find any properties that meet my search criterion yet?