Florida Home Buyers and Investors Blog

Vacation home and second home buyers are trolling the market for deals.  The majority we see are from the Northeast and Canada, typically cold climate dwellers looking for warm sunshine in summer, and no place is better than Florida in winter.

As I help these snowbirds find their dream vacation destination, I see frustration as to what they are willing to spend and what you can get for the money, do not match.  Unfortunately reality kicks in and either an adjustment is made in order to make the transactions work or they go home disappointed.

Everybody wants the best deal, and unfortunately some people get better deals than others.  It's not always the agents fault.  There are many factors in how deals are born.  Sellers position, timing, buyers willingness to negotiate, etc..  Some sellers(banks) need to sell, and others can wait.  We rarely know what position the other side is in but through discussion we can generally get what we need in order to make the deal come together.  I hear, "I'll wait until prices come down further".  I wish I had the same crystal ball.  In many areas, prices are not decreasing, and actually increasing.  If everybody did that, nobody would ever buy a property.

As you may expect, price dictates location.  Everyone wants to live in the best neighborhood with the lowest crime, but that "good" neighborhood is not going to come cheap.  In Palm Beach county, I can find a 1,000sqft $20,000 condo, or a 1,000sqft $1 Million dollar condo.  What makes one worth more than the other?  Location and View.

I can't tell you how many people tell me they have $50,000 to spend and want a new 3 bedroom home near the beach in a good neighborhood.  So do I.  Apparently someone is giving them bad advise that these homes actually exist or that banks are giving away homes in Florida.  Sorry to burst bubbles, but it's not happening. 

Snowbirds who know the market and understand that prices are 50%+ under what they were in 2006-07 know that nobody can time the market, but the time to buy is always when everyone else is selling, and sell when everyone else is buying.  Law of supply and demand.

Now is Buy time.