Palm Harbor Realtors Struggling to Find Homes for First Time Homebuyers!
We aren’t the only Palm Harbor Realtors flooded with last-minute inquiries from first-time home buyers wanting to beat the November 30th deadline for the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. In fact, those of us that are producing agents and active in the Pinellas real estate market, are all calling each other trying to find non-short sale homes. It’s simply too late for Pinellas foreclosures to be snatched up if you’re wanting the tax credit because banks are slow moving dinosaurs.
Most challenging is that while there are over 6,358 single family homes listed in the MLS with about 2,500 or so under $250,000. The reality is that of these, about 80% are on the market and only 20% are actually in the market. The 80% are either in disrepair, overpriced, or both.
That leaves us with about 500 affordable homes in all of Pinellas, Pasco and portions of Hillsborough Counties. Using rough numbers, after we wipe out about 40% of those which are short sales or bank owned, we’ve got all of the first time home buyers clamoring for only about 300 homes! There was even a story last week on Fox News 13 about how many lenders are going to cut off applications starting tomorrow!
Unless Congress extends the credit, the party’s just about over.
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October 18, 2009 at 5:22 pm, Noel Crider said:
Hi…we are experiencing the same thing here in Sacramento, CA area. There are multiple offers on each home, and usually at the top of the heap are cash investors. I have written an average of 6-10 offers for each FTHB before we get a contract accepted. We need two things to happen: as you said, extend the tax credit, and for the banks to release more inventory to the market! Though time-consuming, first time home buyers are sure worth the time…they are the most grateful buyers I have ever worked with!