I was going through the Atlanta MLS tonight I had some thoughts, There are a lot of great buyer incentives for Atlanta home buyers. Some Atlanta homes for sale will have just been reduced 50,000 dollars, and the Atlanta home builder or seller is offering to pay closing costs for the buyers, an increased commission for the buyers agent, and will throw in extras for the buyer. Let's think about this for a minute... a $499,990 home that is reduced to $449,900 the builder will pay your closing costs up to $6000 dollars, there is another 10K on the table for buyer extras or upgrades and, there is an increased commission for the buyers agent of 5%. In my books the net sales price of the home is in the $420K range. It sounds like a great price, and too good a bargain to pass up! Doesn't it? On first glance it is, but on second thought it is way over priced to have that much padding and movement in price. The appraisal is already set because you are going to use the builders lender and financing...and it is new construction. It is going to appraise!
So do you tell you buyer to take it or write a lower offer? Do you have the stomach to negotiate lower? How much lower? Upon further examinaion the last few sales that sold in the subdivision were in the $379K's! Are you comfortable with this? Instead of price do you try to negotiate the builder finishing he basment or making some custom changes? How good a negotiatar are you? Or sell your buyer that it is a hot deal? Since there are a lot of gimmicks for sales, it is easy to pump the price up then lower it dramatically. It does not mean it is worth either price since the home has been sitting for months...and already has every know extra to man other than hot and cold running servants! So who will determine your sales price the seller or the buyer?
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I say give me a fully qualified buyer and we shall see who sets the price if the market is as it is today. As a buyers Representative I specialize in making my buyers so presentable that the sellers take a hard look before turning their noses up if they really want a sale.
I am not in the business of helping people steal real estate but I do specialize in helping my clients find value and I work hard not to leave any extra dollars of their hard earned money on the table.
Jim,
Funny thing...have you ever heard of a builder selling new construction and the property did not appraise. Funny how they seem to always do...I wonder if this ever effected the crazy market we are in.
Jim, builders with unsold inventory are between a rock and a hard place. They have "liability" for the houses they sold at a higher price. Did they fraudulently deceive their customers before? Did they have undue influence over the earlier appraisals? Do they have a "sweetheart deal" with the lender? Any of this could prove to be very costly to the builder. It is better for him to "eat" a little inventory than to open that can of worms.
I think you have to tell your buyer to look somewhere else.
Bill Roberts