QUESTION for BP-observations on market (Oakland duplex buyer)

[Joe Aamidor]

Hi all,

I'm interested in getting feedback from others on what I am seeing in the market these days. 

We have been looking for a duplex/triplex in Oakland since the start of 2019. We've not seen that much that meets our criteria, but lately, we seem to be seeing more homes getting pulled from the market than selling. 

The process seems to be fairly consistent - a home is listed at an under market price, then 2-3 weeks later (after the offer date) it is raised 30-40 percent. Then the sellers say they are using "transparent pricing" - and our realtor usually can get some details on this from each seller. In general the sellers either don't get offers or they get offers close to ask (while the sellers were expecting a bidding war that would drive the price much higher). 

Then, at the new price, the property sits a few months, and if it doesn't sell, it just gets pulled. These homes may be re-listed in the future, time will tell. 

Is this what others are seeing, too?

My take is that sellers look at what sold last year, and want to sell for even more - but buyers aren't spending it. It seems that prices in general are back to 2017 levels, off the 2018 highs. As a buyer, when I see this, I'm apt to wait on the sidelines until sellers are more realistic. But it's also surprising that sellers can be so opportunistic with selling/not selling a vacant property. We've seen properties that were bought 10 or more years ago at 25 percent current asking price, so it is a bit odd that sellers are holding out for an additional let's say $100K when they already stand to make $500-700K on the sale. But I'm not the one selling a home

Is my take on what's happening accurate? Any other thoughts? 

Just thought others might have insights or experiences to contribute here!

Joe

[Joe Aamidor]

yes, I hear there are homes going off market and in general, since a very low offer price is going to lead to a lot of low ball offers, I suspect the asking prices are more in line with what sellers actually want.

a couple other things I'm watching:

-this is typically the time of year that a lot of houses are listed, and in many neighborhoods, you see listings staggered (so only a few at a time) - that's all out the window if we have a shelter in place through May - there will just be a lot of supply on the market at one time

-a lot of homes (we hear) were being fixed up before they were listed. So, now the sellers are sitting on that investment, unable to recoup it (I think that even homes going pending now will have a contingency to let the buyers walk the property before closing)

-what happens with the local economy? if many firms cut even 5 percent of their workforces, I think we have a very different real estate market (less demand and MAYBE more supply)