The Westchester real estate market has been incredibly busy. There has been a noticeable pickup in showings and sales (from 2011) and frankly, that’s why I have not posted a blog update in so long! While I could attribute this surge in activity to the low interest rate environment, in speaking with dozens of buyers and sellers, many are just tired of waiting and have decided to pull the trigger. In some areas, this has led to bidding wars and properties selling above the asking price. While this obviously doesn’t happen with every property that hits the market, for the sellers who price their homes reasonably, they can definitely expect showings and bids.

 

I just went on a listing presentation in White Plains and in doing my prep work, I noticed something very interesting: buyer agent commissions seem to be going up! What that means is that sellers are offering higher compensation to buyers’ agents in order to stand out from the crowd. Put another way, given the large number of homes on the market, sellers are throwing money to the agent who brings a qualified buyer. I showed a house last week in Rye and the seller was offering a free Jeep Wrangler + commission. It will be interesting to see what happens after Labor Day, when more inventory typically hits the market – will existing listings lower their prices? Raise their buyer agent commission? Add incentives? We’ll see…..

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One of the questions I most often get is about financing. Is it available? Will I qualify? Is it going to take a long time? Banks are loaning money, and at great interest rates! Although their requests for documentation will likely drive you crazy, I am seeing mortgages close in a reasonable amount of time (60 days is pretty typical). Appraisals can be tricky since prices are still not solidly ticking higher, but my clients have not had any problems this year. For those readers who are not planning to buy, you should definitely consider refinancing your current mortgage.

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According to the just-released September 2012 issue of Money Magazine, White Plains ranked #44 (out of 100) of America’s best small cities! Here is the link: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/best-places/2012/snapshots/PL3681677.html