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Right now, a lot of home buyers are taking a "wait and see" approach to investing in real estate. And those buyers that want to buy often have a home to sell themselves, resulting in many offers that are contingent on a home sale. There is a lot of Tennessee home search activity on the Internet, evidenced by the heavy traffic to my websites and individual listing websites, which indicates to me that there are a slew of potential home buyers out there who are just not ready to commit. Those buyers who are out there looking seem to be serious, qualified buyers. Unfortunately, with the generous inventory, they are taking a lot longer to make a decision.

The media continues to fuel the fear of foreclosures run rampant, neighborhoods destroyed by bottom-feeding investors, and prices falling through the floor. I think that we are and will experience some fall out from the sub-prime mortgage debacle, but I also believe that Nashville and Middle Tennessee’s somewhat unique economic position will insulate us from some of the pain being felt in the Florida, Nevada, Atlanta, and other high profile markets. We never experienced multiple flipping of properties with prices tripling before completion of construction and astronomical appreciation rates, so we don’t have so far to fall. As a matter of fact, even though our inventory is up almost 40% over last year, Middle Tennessee real estate prices are holding steady. Which might explain why our inventory is up!

Both buyers and sellers are having to compromise in this market. Buyers are low-balling on almost every property, and my mantra continues to be "Don’t take it personally!" Those buyers are only doing what you would do if you were in their position. However, if we do find an interested party, we need to try our darndest to work out a deal, as the next warm body might be several more mortgage payments away. It is more important than ever to have your property priced aggressively. Middle Tennessee home buyers and real estate agents are paying more attention than ever to comparable sales activity and property condition. If something is broken, you will be expected to fix it.  One piece of advise: I never ask my clients what their bottom-line is until we are in the last stretch of a negotiation. So, if your house is priced much above your bottom-line, then you need to reduce the price. "They can make an offer" doesn’t work in this current Tennessee Real Estate Market. We have to be lean and mean to meet the challenge.

My strategy is to continue aggressive advertising with the most emphasis on the Internet, where 98% of buyers start their search. I am also going to re-institute the gas card giveaway to real estate agents showing my Tennessee Home Listings in hopes of encouraging them to bring their qualified buyers to my Sellers. We will continue constant print media advertising and will follow-up all leads and showings as soon as possible.

Kindest regards,

JoAnne

JoAnne Staler, Middle Tennessee REALTOR is providing a unique level of service to buyers and sellers in Nashville, Brentwood, Franklin, Williamson County, Green Hills, Belle Meade, Bellevue, Forest Hills, Oak Hill, Vanderbilt, Belmont, Midtown, Downtown, Historic Areas, Spring Hill, and Thompson Station Tennessee.  Whether Buying or Selling Real Estate locally or Relocating to Middle Tennessee, let a Top Selling Nashville Real Estate Agent help.  To find out more about JoAnne Staler or search for real estate via the Middle Tennessee MLS visit http://joannestaler.com/.