We have properties that don't even show on the MLS, yet have a pending offer on them. I'm not sure how that happens but they show up on the MLS Day one as pending. The house we bought was on the market for 4 days and had multiple offers. My neighbors have told me that they have people knocking on their doors asking if they are interested in selling. Our home value has also increased by 10k since November. I suppose it's a good sign...We regret buying in the city we did so hopefully the value will increase enough so we can sell. How terrible is that... LOL!

Our local market isn't hot but in San Francisco proper as well as in Silicon Valley, it certainly is. So our market is slowly recovering and in due time the price increases will make their way up/across the Bay Bridge since we're a nearby city.

With the banks still reluctant to loan, cash offers do have more value, kaismom. I hope you find something soon; a 1031 exchange is great if you can pull it off. We'll keep our collective fingers crossed for you!

We listed on the first of this month, hoping to get an offer for $10k less than asking -- within three days we had 6 bids, one for 10k over asking. Smallish city (albeit the largest in this state) and the demand does seem to be picking up.

I think for us, it was definitely a matter of being in the right place (established older neighborhood close to downtown) and right price bracket (mid-to-upper 200k's) and size (1500sf, 3 bed/1 bath) for younger couples.

Well that certainly is nice for all of you. Our listing is going on it's 8th month. New build has already started. Not in a city though, out in the burbs.

It's weird around here, too, but mostly at the bottom end of the market, and all, all of it is investment buying, mostly from overseas. Not so sure that's a good thing in the long run, but it's nice for people trying to sell right now. Lots of buyers who don't know the true values and are thinking in big city terms, paying double what a place would have sold for a few months ago. Kind of like 2004 all over again on a much smaller scale.

I'm in the suburbs of Kaismom's area... I would not say houses over here are sitting. It is rather hot here as well...
Good luck! Now you know what you need to do (top price with escalation clause as needed).

Awwww... Sorry drewem! If it makes you feel any better 3 homes on our street just got listed as short sales - 2 are larger than ours, all priced about 15k less than we bought our house for although we have a remodeled kitchen - ugghhh - a LONG horror story and a better location at the very end of a cul-de-sac. So it looks like we'll be stuck here a while longer, too. Oh well. I really hope you sell your house. Have you gotten any feedback on it?

Thank you Shed. It's very stressful. We don't make settlement in the new house until April- attempting to move the date towards the end of school.

Yes some feedback: -The development doesn't have enough trees. It's a 5yr development, the 'street trees' were put in last year, and our personal lot has 12 trees, only 4 were 'street trees'
-The house is very clean, cleaner than others we've seen

Not much else in the way of constructive feedback. It's not like I am going to go and plant more trees in the development.

We've dropped the price from 499 to 475, and are available for all showings, we just have to wait for the right buyer.

All the lower end markert houses are being sold quick, and interest rates are great now.

Ahhh... I see. Your house doesn't sound like a starter house - ours and most on our street are. Ours was maybe 400k in 2005, but we paid less than 1/2. Within a 5 mile radius are million dollar lake homes too, though. We live in a strange city. LOL. I think the right buyer will come along in time for your house. Things work themselves out for the most part. Just take a deep breath and sprinkle lots of miracle gro on the trees around your neighborhood! :)

In our town, the old town community is doing quite well in sales. Not so with the burbs. The town appeals to young families because of all the activities available, the reasonable prices and the location. I think these families are looking for a different life style, where they have access to downtown areas and where communities still have character.

We moved here 6 years ago because we wanted an old house in a old house community within walking distance to downtown and other ammenities. We couldn't be happier and our house has appreciated (conservatively) about $40,000.
Diane

Is everyone seeing the entry level homes rising fastest in price? And the highest prices homes still languishing? That is the case here in CT from what i see.

Where is everyone (ie what metropolitan area)?

We are in DFW TX area--midway between two metro areas...
have older home almost 30 yrs old listed for sale under 30 days and is under contract in the 10 day option period for inspections...
should close before Nov 30 if those go well

it is in older neighborhood where there are mature trees/landscaping, owners have maintained their property and when it was new it was one of two "best" neighborhoods in the suburban town...it still has high % of original owners and most residents are older--few elementary school kids in this neighborhood...so guess target buyers are not first time or young familiy

when we listed there were 5 other homes on market--now there are 3, a 50% decrease. One home under contract is large 2 story listed around 330K--owner has moved to another area and house was up for sale for about 6 months...
don't know if he took low offer since pending prices aren't disclosed on MLS info...

We had done a major remodel on our house 4 yrs ago--so there are upgrades in kitchen and the 2.5 bathrooms--new paint, hardware, ceiling fans, carpet and tile flooring...not the normal case with most listings I have seen...
we could not price to include all our costs so on paper we are losing money but since house was rental for past 4 yrs some of that loss might help us on taxes...but our contract price is higher than what one agent we interviewed before signing MLS contract suggested was good list price...so that is positive...

We had probably 7 or 8 showings and well-attended open house before the offer...and have had a showing since...but now under contract house is not listed on MLS so won't be as easy to find online....I was surprised actually that an offer came so soon because our house does not have an open kitchen arrangement and there is step-down to the main living area...both of which are "dated" design elements...
but the buyer is middle aged woman so maybe she is comfortable with those features...
We are not in the "top" school districts in the area for $ for $ our district offers a great education for people who can't afford a 400K home...

DFW in general did not see the type of housing collapse that places like Las Vegas or Phoenix or some parts of the east/west did...but our prices also did not over-appreciate in most areas either...
we are helped by the strong job market and the fact that people are moving into this area from out of state so our buyer pool is replenished...

mtnrdredux, this past year our low end ($1 mill) has been very active, but with quite a range of $/sq.ft. Less desirable or some short sales selling at a discount and desirable houses selling at a premium, very quickly and with multiple offers. Very low inventory.

In the last month there has been crazy activity in the $3.5 mill range with 6 houses going under agreement. So our high end has come alive. Not sure why, specially so close to the election. Maybe upgrading by those that sold in a lower range.

Every house that gets sold, seems to get a major makeover or remodel by the new owners, so more money being spent and for the most part paid for with cash. Our local contractors are busy. We are in a top rated school town in LA. Foreclosures were a very small part of our very local market during the downturn.

I talked to someone who recently moved here (midwest) from Phoenix where she was a RE agent. She said the supply of homes has really tightened up there because the banks have held back foreclosures from the market. So it's pretty common to have multiple offers that go over asking price on houses. Rumor there is that in January the banks will let loose and start putting their foreclosures on the market again, causing prices to tank.

Market here (undisclosed city in the midwest) has shored up. Houses

The front page on today's Arizona Republic says "Sellers Returning To Profitability".

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2012/10/27/20121027phoenix-housing-market-rebound-new.html?nclick_check=1

Big investors have been coming in purchasing blocks of homes at great prices.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2012/10/20/20121020biz-investors.html

As locals, we know that Metro Phoenix area housing has been up for quite a while, multiple offers on one house is coming back.

Small American and foreign investors (lots of Candadians Mexians, and Asians) scoope up houses with cash transactions. People who purchased homes after 2008 have made great profit.

For a few months, we have been seeing empty parcels are being cleared and fenced, big construction trucks are on the streets again.

Our realtor friends, mortgage broker, stock broker and coworkers have been complaining about not being able to beat other offers to get the homes they want. Appraisers are solid booked. The home projects we plan to do are on our contractors' waiting list, the wait is more than 2 months.

Our stock broker said banks have become smart, they have been slowly releasing foreclosures instead of flooding market with their inventory. This strategy works very well for them. There is no reason they won't stick to this approach, especially the market is getting better and better.

I've had mine on the market in So CA for four days and have received two offers already. My agent said we should be receiving a third today. I've had ten showings. One of the women pulled up in front and asked me to show it and I did. She said she was an agent and they were going to offer $120,000. When I asked her for a card she said she didn't have one. It's listed at $113,000. I haven't heard from her, so she may have been fibbing to me. She sounded convincing, though. The other two offers were for $113,000 and $125,000. There are some great deals right now, and interest rates are low.

I wouldn't say there are great deals in my area of CA. Are the prices lower than 2005-2008? Yes, but even though the prices are lower, real estate is still expensive in my area based on average salaries, etc.