patrick.net

I can only speak for myself. I have all cash in this range due to selling my RE in 2006 for a tax free massive gain.

Probably lots of buyers now sold during the peak and are now getting back in. Every single indicator you can name was screaming 'bubble! bubble! bubble!' for about 4 years. It was a HUGE window to sell (unlike stock market windows which are tiny and brief in comparison).

You weren't out bid. All the times I was outbid, when I house hunting, every single one I was outbid on, was never taken off the market. After I told the realtor, thanks but no thanks.

You should make time sensitive offers, I always offered asking price, if it was a house I was interested in and was in intentionally limited budget. How ever I never offered no more than the accessed value. And made it known I wont counter offer from the get go.

It saved me a lot of heart ache and at least 75K as the comparable started dropped that much while they were playing that multiple offer crap with me.

One of the first houses I bid, was just around corner from the house I bought. It was still unsold when I bought two years later. It finally sold last year, for 60K less than I bid on it.

I agree with TPB, I don't let stuff like this waver my sitting spirit. I keep monitoring it on Redfin and half of the time it is back on market or sold lower then what you were told about the all cash offer. What matters is when and what price did it sell for.

TPB says

You weren't out bid. All the times I was outbid, when I house hunting, every single one I was outbid on, was never taken off the market. After I told the realtor, thanks but no thanks.

Bingo! You have no way of knowing that the realtors are not lying under the current system.

Realtors have a huge motive to lie to get your money.
They have nearly no risk of being caught.
And even if they are caught, they can lie again and claim the previous all-cash buyer fell through or whatever.
And even if they're caught and can't get out of it, there is no punishment.

Therefore, they will lie.

They are either nigerian prince and princess or rich Chinese government officers.

1: Trusts. 2: Military Contractors. 3: Black Market Dealers. 4: Inheritance.

Last time I tried calling their bluff i ended up losing the house.

toothfairy says

losing the house.

HGTV speak.

xenogear3 says

They are either nigerian prince and princess or rich Chinese government officers.

I am waiting for some one to tell,they are Apple guys. :)

Most Apple guys don't live in Bay Area.

Also we are educated to diversify, and never buy own company's stock.

I know of at least four and am related to one military contractor. These fellows made 400K a year in Iraq. That will buy a lot of rentals!

toothfairy says

Last time I tried calling their bluff i ended up losing the house.

No, you ended up saving the money.

And are you really sure it sold, and what it sold for? How are you sure?

Its pretty easy to know if it sold for cash. The status changes to pending instead of pending wo release. Then it changes to sold. This one sold for full price. There were 3 other people at the house the day it was listed.

Realtors may be bluffing in some cases but some realtors wont even give you the time of day if you require financing and will hold out for the all cash offer

Especially with new listings that are priced well.

Somewhere along these lines... I just looked at a place and the listing agent stated that they already have multiple offers above the list price. Is this (especially disclosing the prices of the other offers part) legal?

If I was at an auction I would understand, but I thought buying a house was more confidential than that.

Thanks for any insight.

toothfairy says

Its pretty easy to know if it sold for cash. The status changes to pending instead of pending wo release.

You mean the MLS? That's a set of private databases controlled by realtors, with no government oversight whatsoever.

Lots of funny things happen in the MLS if the realtors think it will get more money out of you. Not good to base a huge financial decision on its supposed honesty.

The only way I think you really know if a house sold for cash is to go to the county and see the liens on the property. If there are no liens, then there is no mortgage, and it sold for cash.

But trusting the honesty of the realtors' database? Not for me thanks.

toothfairy says

Realtors may be bluffing in some cases but some realtors wont even give you the time of day if you require financing and will hold out for the all cash offer

That is dumb. Their cut is not any more juicy than it would be with financing.

dasai says

Somewhere along these lines... I just looked at a place and the listing agent stated that they already have multiple offers above the list price. Is this (especially disclosing the prices of the other offers part) legal?

If I was at an auction I would understand, but I thought buying a house was more confidential than that.

Thanks for any insight.

Why would you believe the realtor?

They have no motive to tell the truth. Their only motive is to get as much money out of you as quickly as possible.

Just say to yourself:

1. If there are other offers, the realtor is unethical in telling me about them.
2. If there are not other offers, the realtor is unethical in lying to me about them.

Then you will approach enlightenment about realtors.

PockyClipsNow says

Probably lots of buyers now sold during the peak and are now getting back in.

The object of a bubble is to suck as many people in as possible. Even if you were lucky and sold in 2006, the bubble will get you later, one way or another.