The combination of horrendous weather conditions and rocky economic news together are having a dampening effect on the joy factor generally. It’s in seasons like this however that there is genuine opportunity for those who choose to be unaffected by sentiment, make decisions and go forward. Our observation is that homeowners looking to sell now are doing so for genuine reasons, they are aware of the state of the market and are listening. Buyers however are particularly tentative, often even fearful of making a move.
It’s interesting the extent to which the herd syndrome affects buyers behaviour. Of interest we observe buyers are most often happy to pay a premium when in competition. Right now, in many cases buyers have the opportunity to negotiate with the vendors sole focus – a great way to buy, but in a heated market not often the case.
The purchase of a home always involves trade offs between features, benefits and price. The value of homeownership goes way beyond the price, it’s in markets like this that perspective is often lost however, as buyers focus too much on price rather than the bigger picture.
Call me anytime!
Jo Johnstone
021 411 107
jo@uprealestate.co.nz
