[quote=ltsdd]…I don’t have a problem with someone saying MM is tough for buyers right now. However, to correlate low inventory (tough for buyers) to a market being on fire is absurd to say the least.[/quote]
I agree with this statement. An area having “low inventory” and being “on fire” are NOT one and the same. This doesn’t apply only to MM. Thousands of “potential sellers” in SD County are still on the fence … for GOOD reason! They don’t want to have to price their properties to compete with deep-pocketed lenders and (crooked) SS listing agents!
I don’t believe the inventory is so low anywhere that a young family looking within it can’t find ANYTHING suitable in their price ranges. The reality is probably somewhere in the middle … (1) buyers are too picky given their qualifications; (2) buyers don’t have enough downpayment to compete with those who do; (3) and, some buyers may be delusional and insist on shopping in areas where their offers will NEVER be accepted, that is, shopping in areas “out of their league.”
Everyone who has a sufficient downpayment and credit rating CAN buy something that their income will qualify them for. Whether they actually perceive it as a good place to live is the $64M question. If they don’t like what’s on offer in areas they can afford, they can continue to rent.
I think it’s really hard for current buyers to be practical, ESP FT buyers. They’ve seen all these unqualified families living in areas and/or properties over the last few years that they never should have qualified to buy in the first place. Even though this phenomenon was phony because they used “funny money,” it raises the bar on many of today’s buyers’ “minimum requirements.”
There IS stuff to buy out there …. everywhere …. yes, listed on the MLS. Many of the the “traditional FT buyers’ listings” are out there gathering dust.
