Houses Under $200,000 Are Selling Fast In San Antonio

Posted by Randy Kelley on September 12, 2009

This is a great article thanks to Creighton A. Welch - San Antonio Express-News, for web posting 09/12/2009

Houses Under $200K Are Selling Fast In San Antonio

What’s hot out there depends on who you ask. If it’s the meteorologist, it’s every day of the week this entire summer and probably most of the fall.

If you ask the local real estate market, you’ll find that it’s a certain segment of homes that is selling more than others.

And that hot homes category seems to be the one under $200,000. In fact, homes below $200,000 have made up 71 percent of the sales so far in 2009, according to the San Antonio Board of Realtors.

“The price range that seems to be moving is the first-time home buyer market due to the tax credit for these buyers,” said Janet Heydenreich, a real estate agent with the Phyllis Browning Co. “I think we will continue to see strong interest in that price range as the deadline approaches.”

First-time home buyers are eligible to receive an $8,000 tax credit if they qualify and purchase a home before Dec. 1.

The tax credit has created some pressure on the lower end of the market, because that’s what is most affordable to those first-time buyers who may just be starting out in their careers.

So, watch out for potential price wars.

“It is possible that bidding wars may appear as the deadline comes closer,” Heydenreich said.

If you’re thinking about selling your below-$200,000 home, now might be a good time, as the construction of new homes in this price range has slowed and the demand has increased.

“Because of the tax credit, there is a shortage of good homes under $250,000,” said Tyler Willmann, a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty.

And he knows from recent experience.  “I actually got into a bidding war,” he said. “We started at $180,000 and went up to $200,000 and lost. We could not find anything in the $200,000 range that was in move-in shape.”

He said many of the best homes below $200,000 can sell in a matter of days.

And he said it will only get worse because there will be more price pressure closer to the tax credit deadline.

“I have three clients that will be ready in September to purchase. I just hope they can find something,” Willmann said. “If they have a nice home under $250,000, put it on the market.”

But even homes in that “hot” price range need to be in tip-top shape, and you should look at how many homes are for sale in your neighborhood, said DeniseGraves, a real estate agent with the Graves Group.

If the home needs some work, take care of that first. And if there are a dozen homes for sale near you, you might be better off waiting until a few of those sell.

Although interest definitely is greater for affordable homes, on the high end of the spectrum, where homes above $750,000 have made up just 1 percent of the market this year, there does seem to be some interest from those who can afford it, and who are gutsy enough to make such a big investment.

“The higher-end market is moving, but very slowly,”Heydenreich said. “We do have buyers in that price range, but they are being very cautious about their purchases and are not going to pay above market value for a home.”

She said the motivation for people buying in the higher-end price range above $750,000 comes from historically low and competitive interest rates.

There also seems to be some high-end interest because of an abundant inventory.

“Buyers feel like they can negotiate and get a great value in a luxury home,” said Graves.

With a relatively large amount of high-end homes, buyers feel each should have something unique about it, Graves said.

But whether buyers are looking for the most affordable home or the most high-end, whether a home sells boils down to how well a home is priced.

“We are seeing the market adjust itself to be more competitive. Buyers are reacting to correctly priced homes in show-ready condition, and we aren’t seeing low offers on those properties,” Graves said.

End of Article

Call Randy or Stephanie Kelley, Realtors(R), Keller Williams Legacy, San Antonio, for all your realty needs.  Visit our web site at sanantoniohomequest.com or call us at (210) 863-2661, (210) 867-8743, (800) 201-9145, or E-mail us at kelleybus@aol.com and swkrealtor@aol.com.  Ask us about our buyer reward cash bonus program.