By way of keeping the conversation rolling, I really want to thank harriet for checking in from the cafe in Amsterdam, NL (June 12, 2009 – “If you think you should be able to afford it, then you should. Actual numbers dont matter.”) Worldwide wireless internet connection and ubiquitous WiFi truly are wonderful things, and it certainly does open the mind and spirit to sample what is accepted and verbotten in other cultures. On the other hand, given the radio silence since, I do hope she* hasn’t been delayed by our Customs service returning to “the Village” trying to bring home some souveneirs of her journey; those boys take a dim view of certain substances that harriet clearly acquainted herself with in her travels.

For my part, if I were not averse to surrendering my faculties and chose instead to drift through my daily life self-medicated on three-martini lunches or the like, I suppose my outlook on the real estate market would be much different. I’ll need to think about that some more.

*given the moniker I’ve presumed hariet is a female, but you never can tell.

Thanks for the link! As to that “house-hunting-fatigue” I have a slightly more optimistic take on the homebuying/negotiating experience. I truly believe that a Buyer can make his own opportunities and force the issue on price, if you will.

I believe the Buyer who comes to the negotiating table well-prepared (Prequalified, Attorney lined up, Engineer lined up, and able/willing to close quickly) can push a Seller into a price much more favorable to the Buyer. This is a technique I have taught my clients over the years and it works. When you have all your i’s dotted and t’s crossed, you call the shots in a Buyer’s market where the Seller may still have an unrealistic expectation on price.

The technique helps you further to separate the serious Sellers from the dabblers. A serious Seller has a real and true motivation to sell. The dabblers are doing only that, there’s no commitment to the process of selling the home.

You push the Seller into your price-zone simply by making an offer. Set your maximum price on the house, then begin your offer below that somewhere. The Seller’s reaction to your offer (and, if it so happens, counteroffers) tells you much about their particular mindset.

I used this technique to buy my first home in 1992, which was a FSBO and which was extremely overpriced. In the end, my method worked and I purchased the house at the price I was willing to pay. The Seller made a serious reduction off his asking price to meet me.

Instead of feeling weary, fatigued, worn-out, and misunderstood by Sellers, take charge of your homebuying experience. Go out this Saturday and make five offers on five different houses.

See what happens. You might find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife…and you may ask yourself, “How did I get here?” To which I will happily reply, “You MADE it happen!”

Hope that helps!

By bubble head, do you mean, one who was on a submarine?