“Don’t send me anything but GREAT real estate deals, John!”
As a longtime investor, I understand that mentality, too. It’s like trying to find a stock and snapping it up at the bottom then selling it at its peak. How many times have you done that?
But we all want great real estate deals.
The first thing to get clear is, “what does a GREAT deal mean to you?” Is it:
* 50% off list price?
* When the owner hasn’t raised rents in 10 years, so the upside is massive?
* A 12 CAP… or an 8 GRM?
* A property right in the path of development?
* A foreclosure of any kind?
If it’s foreclosures, look at the chart below. As you can see, there’s not much delinquency going on today. There’s less than 1% of single family loans in that position.
And if your friends are watching the national nightly news talking about how inventory is rising… stop. That was last year. Plus, national data is irrelevant when buying in the Delray Beach area.
Our inventory is dropping.
Real Estate Deals are Not Found In Low Inventory Markets
Regular readers know I put my Weekly Inventory Update at the end of each essay. Today, I’m putting new data right here so you don’t miss it:
* 10 weeks ago there were 32,813 properties for sale in South Florida
* Last week there were 29,922
* This morning there are 29,350
* Inventory is DOWN over 10% in 10 weeks
*** Inventory is DOWN, 10 weeks in a row ***
So back to a GREAT deal. Great real estate deals are out there, somewhere. But most likely not in the form of a foreclosure, or general inventory. Those two trends are not in your favor. So we need to look at this market with a different set of lenses.
Great Real Estate Deals May Be Found In Aging Inventory
One area to hone in your research is to look at properties that’ve been on the market over 60 days. That’s a good place to start. I wrote in more detail about that recently, here.
As each month goes by in 2023, today’s market is often compared to the last month, or same month, one year ago. When that’s the case, today’s seller is behind the curve as if they’re not lowering their price to meet buyer demand, their property becomes a statistic in the MLS.
So it’s not unusual to see properties on the market 90, 120 or 150 days. This is where you should spend more time with me looking. This is where great real estate deals are hiding.
Remain patient. Before you know it, things will change and you’ll be better prepared when it does. But, stay in the game. Don’t stop your search only to come back six months from now wondering what happened. Real estate deals are being had now.
Call me and share what your idea of a great real estate deal means to you. With that information, I can dig in and help myself find you what you’re a property that makes sense.
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*** My February Market Update video is right here.
*** Are you a new investor trying to figure how the numbers work? Or thinking about relocation here? Or just want to see what else I have available for you? Try this.
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*** Your Weekly Inventory Update ***
* 4 years ago there were over 54,000 properties available in S. Florida
* It bottomed in February 2022 at 14,485… a 73% drop
* Last week there were 29,922 available… a 115% rise in 12 months
* This morning’s Inventory is 29,350
*** Inventory is DOWN, 10 weeks in a row ***
Ready to grab a coffee together and talk real estate? Text me.
