As a Realtor, I have been helping buyers and sellers negotiate real estate home contracts in Austin-Round Rock for more than fifteen years. Wow, has it changed.

For most of my years, I would do a market analysis, determine the market value based on recent sales in the same area and adjust the price based on size, condition, location and other amenities. We would tour the house with the seller and suggest areas that they can improve to make their home sell better and then we would help the seller prepare their house to compete with the other nearby homes for sale.

On the buyer side, we would get to know the buyer, find out what they wanted and needed and then suggest some things that they should consider before making this large investment. Then we would setup some property email alerts to notify the buyers of potential homes that match what they are looking for. Together, we would analyze the properties as they came up and narrow it down to the best few that we wanted to look at. That was then!

The Austin-Round Rock real estate market has certainly changed. Like any other product, the housing market is affected by supply and demand and the demand in the Austin-Round Rock area has definitely changed. We’ll talk about why, later.

In the current market, it’s still a good idea to prepare your home to be the best one in the neighborhood, but it’s no longer necessary as it’s almost guaranteed to sell regardless of the condition.

I usually price a home at what I believe should be the current market value based on condition and nearby activity. Not too low to try to attract a quick sale and not too high to try to get a higher than market price for the property. Those too high and too low prices are not good and not necessary as the market takes care of finding the right price for us. In all of my recent listings, I continue to be surprised by what the market is willing to pay for a home, but that is the result of an unbalanced real estate market and the demand exceeding the supply.

In most of my recent sales, we have gotten into a multiple offer situation. As a Realtor, I prefer to work one-offer at a time because I have empathy that the buyers and their family are just looking for a place to live at a reasonable price. However, as the listing Realtor, I represent the sellers and it’s my duty to help them achieve their real estate goals and that usually means getting the highest price with the lowest risk of contract default.

There are lots of things that they buyer’s agents are now doing to try to secure a house for their clients. Many of them submit a deadline for response with their offers as it creates a sense of urgency for the sellers to accept the offer or lose it. As a listing agent, I convey this information to the sellers but in reality, there really is no urgency to take the first offer for your home. If you are selling a home in Austin-Round Rock, the motivated buyers will often be the first one to submit, but it’s also important to note that it might take a few days for advertising to saturate the market.

If you are representing a buyer, it sometimes helps to provide a letter with the offer so the sellers can see the humanity that goes on behind the contract. Or as stated earlies, give the seller a deadline to reply to create a sense of urgency. Sometimes, being the first to offer can help if you find a buyer that wants to get their property under contract, so they don’t have to think about it anymore.

Buyers are currently offering many incentives to try to win contracts that were uncommon when the Austin Round Rock real estate market was more balanced. It’s now common for buyers to waive appraisals, waive contingencies on financing approval, offer shorter option periods, offer more earnest money, pay for traditional seller paid closing costs and of course, pay higher prices.

If you are a seller, of Austin-Round Rock real estate, you are blessed. If you are a buyer, it’s a challenging and very competitive market, but don’t give up, the Austin-Round Rock real estate market should continue to have a bright future for quite some time. Either way, it really is a great benefit to have an experience Realtor® helping you with the process.

Contact us if we can help you buy a home, investment or commercial property in the Austin-Round Rock area.  It’s a great way to build wealth.

ROCK Properties Realty
512 850 4510
service@rockproperties.com