Hang on... It's going to be a bumpy ride...

By Terry Brown

Sorry for my absence, I've already had a pretty busy 2013.

I've been in the QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) business for 30 something years...   I have ketchup in my blood.   However, it looks like I'm about to go through a transfusion and replace the ketchup with Pizza sauce, as I may be becoming a Domino's Pizza franchisee.    I'm already running the operation, just waiting for the paperwork to go through.    Sales are booming, employees are excited, customers are happy - what more can you want?    The big question is will I have one store or two.   I already own the Salida Domino's real estate, so taking over the franchise and operations is no big deal, but Buena Vista (BV) may end up being for grabs and it is looking promising, although I have said I'd like to get all of my assets in one place.   BV is only about 20 something miles north of me, but I rarely travel in that direction.   Guess that would have to change if it went through.

We're seeing LOTS of real estate traffic in our office.    With the framework of marketing that I setup in 2012, it is beginning to pay off.    We're sometimes getting as many as a dozen leads in one day, and these are solid leads - solid buyers & sellers.    However, we're running out of inventory.    Perhaps it is just the winter blues when folks don't want buyers trampling through their property with snow on the ground or the uncertainty of the economy, but there isn't as many quality listings as there used to be.  Average Days on Market (DOM) have expanded to almost a year but properties are beginning to move, as folks have settled on buying fixer-uppers just to get in on the market before it becomes a seller's market.  There's still alot of carpenters available since building is slow, otherwise unless you are going to fix things yourself, be careful biting off more than you can chew. 

Now, although fixer-uppers sound great, they are not being discounted for that much just because of the super low inventory, and sellers know this.   We're seeing home prices, including fixer-uppers, increase by as much as 10% year over year, only because of the demand and short inventory.   So, if you are looking for a deal, don't look too hard or what you think wasn't a deal today will be when you miss it tomorrow.

As far as sellers, you have a couple of options.    If you are going to buy something else, make your deal now and move on, as prices for your next place will probably be taking a spike, or just won't be available at all...    If you don't need to buy another place, this is the time to sit somewhat firm on your price, but don't be too rigid.    The average property sold for 95% of asking price in 2012, just make sure you are not "over-priced" or your property could just sit.    If your property is over-priced now, the longer it is on the market the less looks it will get once the prices rise up it's actual value as folks will assume there is something wrong with it, so have a REASON to support the price of your property, other than "that's what I want for it"...   

TDB