Every investment-minded buyer wants to get a good deal when purchasing real estate. There is no magic bullet for finding and buying sound real estate investments in Big Bear, but you can succeed if you know how. The bottom line is, you must be willing to actively participate in the process on several different levels.
7 Things You Must Know To Get A Hot Deal In Big Bear
1. Trust your agent
Establishing trust with your real estate agent should be your first order of business. Your agent should be your trusted advisor. Everyone is different and building trust with people happens at different rates. The sooner you determine that you can trust your agent, the sooner you will be able to leverage her expertise and zero in on your investment options. If you don’t trust your agent, you shouldn’t be working with her. Ask yourself this, “Is she trying to sell me or is she trying to help me?”. This applies to every real estate investor, regardless of his level of experience. Savvy investors always have trusted advisors.
2. Learn the market
Your real estate agent should be eager for you to know as much as you can about the Big Bear market. No amount of the investor’s real estate knowledge will render the agent obsolete. Expect and allow your agent to educate and advise you and you will be ahead of the game.
One way your agent will help you learn the market is to make you aware when houses you have viewed go under contract and then close escrow. This simple process will demonstrate how long a house you have seen was on the market, and how close to list price it sold for. Your agent should also send you price reductions and status changes. This isn’t to sell you on any specific house; it is meant to educate you on market trends. This is especially important in a market as unique as Big Bear’s, where virtually every property is different.
Your agent should also provide you with market statistics and other relevant news related to the Big Bear real estate market. Click here to sign up for the Big Bear Real Estate monthly newsletter.
3. Move fast
The ideal trust relationship between a Big Bear Real Estate agent and an investor is so solid that when the agent calls and says, “A house came on the market this morning and it is exactly what you want, get up here ASAP to see it!”, the investor gets to Big Bear to see it. We understand that dropping everything to pounce on a house in a destination market is not always easy, but the investors who move the quickest are the ones who have the best shot at scooping up a great deal. Your agent should know your needs and wants so well, that if they say you should get to Big Bear ASAP, it’s because your house has arrived.
You should have such confidence in your agent that if she advises that you need to move fast, it’s because you need to move fast to have a shot at getting the deal.
4. Win the contract
After you have moved fast and hustled to Big Bear to see the fantastic investment your trusted agent told you that you would love, it’s important to not “choke” on the offer. Your agent will be able to advise you on you what you should do to win the deal. If she says you should go in at full price, then go in at full price. She should also structure your offer to beat other offers in other less obvious ways, such as a including a strong deposit, or by waiving some standard seller fees.
There is nothing more frustrating for an investor or his agent than when they get the “move fast” part right but then choke on the offer part. Making an offer isn’t buying; getting under contract and closing escrow is buying. You can’t close if your offer doesn’t result in a signed contract, so get your offer chosen and avoid the disappointment of missing out on a hot deal.
5. Move slow
Patience is a virtue. Great investments can be found in the purchase of a short sale. Short sale deals often take longer to close and are more complicated than typical transactions. Short sale listings are less common than they were a few years ago, but they will always be out there. If you have the stomach for the short sale process, this can be an opportunity for a great buy. Your agent will be able to determine the likelihood of a short sale transaction actually closing at a good price. If you don’t have the patience for the short sale process, then don’t bother looking at them. You could just end up suffering through a process that may not come together and there is no price that will make that worthwhile.
Another way moving slow can reap big rewards is by waiting for a property of interest to move into a good price range. Listing prices that go stale often quietly reduce into a great price range while everyone else is looking at new inventory. Your agent should notify you immediately if an overpriced house has reduced into a workable range, or if the listing agent knows that the seller has become more flexible in price, and it might be a good time to resubmit the offer.
Lastly, don’t assume that a house you really like is a goner just because it went pending. Good deals fall out of escrow all the time for various reasons. If a pending house you lost out on goes back on the market, your agent should notify you right away. A good deal gone active again will still be a good deal, so moving fast in this case is still important if you want a shot at it. There is always time to determine why it fell out of escrow. Don’t assume the deal fell through because there is something wrong with the house. Your agent should be able to find out why, but don’t delay in pursuing it if the house is a winner.
6. Rebound
If you lose out on a house one, two, three times…rebound! Hot deals can take a while to come together. The better the bargain, the longer it can take. Having stringent investment criteria is perfectly acceptable as long as you don’t grab your toys and go home if it doesn’t happen quickly enough. Becoming disenchanted with a real estate market because of impatience is a rookie mistake.
If you learn the Big Bear market and love Big Bear, don’t shoot yourself in the foot if you have to take a few shots at a purchase before you nail one down. The truth of the matter is, if you are not having success, you may need to loosen your criteria. You may need to raise your price range, look for a smaller house, or ease up on the rigidity of your offers. Your agent should let you know this long before you become disenchanted with investing in Big Bear.
7. Be realistic
Always remember to use common sense. Real estate investing isn’t rocket science, and it can be fun! You shouldn’t drive yourself crazy whilst trying to find a cabin. You can score a good investment in Big Bear equipped with the right knowledge. To get the right knowledge, you need the right agent, so sort that out first and the rest will fall into place.
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