Why I'm jealous of today's homebuyers

By: Marty Kramer | Consumer columnist

When I bought my current home, nobody was talking about real-estate-market woes or foreclosure troubles or a struggling national economy. And yet, I'm a little jealous of buyers today.

The big story back then was the insane seller's market we were in. Time after time, my wife and I would look at a home hours after it came on the MLS only to learn it was already under contract.

Many houses sold before ever making it to the MLS. Bidding wars were common, and good properties fetched asking price or above. Seller concessions? Forget it.

My wife and I spent about seven minutes in the home we now own before telling our REALTOR® we would make an offer. Full price, of course. Even then, we worried someone would outbid us.

We asked the sellers if they could adjust the closing date so we wouldn't have to move twice. I don't know if they laughed at our request … they knew we had
zero leverage.

It all turned out well. My family is happy in our home, and we love our neighbor-
hood. Still, it would have been nice to have had more time, more choices.

Every real estate market has pros and cons. Right now, interest rates and housing inventory are extremely attractive. The market is pretty balanced, slightly favoring buyers in many locales. If your personal situation is favorable for purchasing a home, why hesitate? Hey, you probably can spend more than seven minutes in a home before deciding if you want to make an offer.