Last Friday, in a few minutes at work where I had nothing to do and didn't really feel like getting into anything new, I started to poke around at realtor.com. I found a house that interested me, mostly because it was extremely well priced.
We went and looked at it. And it's pretty. Although the more I think about it, it's not EXACTLY the right house. Why? The upstairs is crowded and chunky, and would have been better if they'd left the loft, rather than creating a 5th bedroom. And it's not on a canal/lake/water. And it only has a 2-car garage. And it would be a project, requiring blinds and appliances and a fence. So, yes, I am pretty sure it's not the house.
But it got me (and by extension, Inspector) thinking about houses.
So, now the question seems to be, should we put my house on the market, if only to see what happens?
My house is on the small side, probably a first-time buyer kind of house. And that market may still have buyers in it, folks who don't need to sell their current house to get into a new one, folks who have been saving their pennies waiting for the bottom of the market, which may be more-or-less now.
I have no doubt, were we to sell my house, that we'd be able to find a house in no time at all, and at a pretty good value.
It sort of seems like a hassle though... cleaning up and letting people see the house.
I love my house. I do not know what to do.
Figure out what you want to spend, then set up real estate websites with searches that push listings to you via Google Reader or via e-mail. Redfin.com and Ziprealty.com are two good options that way. You'll learn pretty quickly what's out there and what's priced well and what is not. When you see houses that are priced well, based on what they offer, go see them. And follow the price drops in those that interest you, but weren't priced well. At that point, you could make an offer contingent upon the sale of your place.
Posted by: 10lbs | October 21, 2008 at 11:04 PM