Time it takes to sell a house on STX?

Some houses have been on the market for years.

Rent first for sure. And do several PMVs before that.

Judith's Fancy is center island, West of C'sted.

We are trying to decide if planning to rent for a year first is more sensible, as opposed to buying right away ... /quote]

Yes, at LEAST a year. It takes most newcomers at least a year for the rose-colored spectacles to start sliding` and another few years before they completely fall off.

 

Oops you are correct of course!

(tu). My friends house has been on the market for well over 3 yrs. the house we bought had been for sale for over 2 yrs. We paid about 70k under original asking price.

Some houses have been on the market for years.

And some houses sell right away.
No one can answer your question.

Area, condition of home, market, economy. intrested buyers available...Lots of different factors could make a sale take weeks... or years.

Rates are still low right now, inventories are shrinking, and prices are slowly rising. Those kinds of things are usually a plus for buying. Maybe look at it more of an investment opportunity?

And some houses sell right away.
No one can answer your question.

Area, condition of home, market, economy. intrested buyers available...Lots of different factors could make a sale take weeks... or years.

Rates are still low right now, inventories are shrinking, and prices are slowly rising. Those kinds of things are usually a plus for buying. Maybe look at it more of an investment opportunity?

All true.

Another question you should ask yourself is can you afford the thousand of dollars that you'll spend for a year in a rental and then have nothing to show for it at the end of the year?

It's not an easy decision, to rent vs. buy.
Not all people who relocate take to life on an island.
Some do.

Singlefin is correct.
No one answer fits all.

As a realtor in STT, I've seen homes sell in a very short time, within being on the market for just a couple of days, to seeing some on the market for years. Usually, the ones on the market for a long time have issues with price, location and/or condition.

It's important to properly price a home the first time it goes on the market and have it in a well kept, clean, showable condition when it's first listed.

Most people don't wish to take on huge remodeling projects. If you buy a fixer upper, don't spend more money fixing it up than the location will allow on a return when you sell as you won't get your money back.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Thanks for this singlefin--your answer made me think about the logistics of renting out a property if we chose not to stay on island full time.

Thanks Alana. I was hoping you would respond because you're a RE pro!
Do you see a marked difference in the time it takes to sell properties in the $750k-$1.5M range vs other market segments on the island?
I'm asking because where we currently live (suburb of a major city), lower priced houses fly off the market because of a prestigious school system, the "midrange" are a crapshoot because it's the majority of the supply, and the really spendy stuff that's up into the multi-millions can sit for years.
I'm trying to understand the general bell curve on STX.

i know someone it took over a year to sell and i know someone who 2 years later still had not sold. they ended up renting it out for a while. im not sure if they still have it or not?

Rates are still low right now, inventories are shrinking, and prices are slowly rising. Those kinds of things are usually a plus for buying.

or selling.

The general comments I've heard of over time is that sellers on STX don't like to negotiate too much. (Fortunately was not the case with my condo purchase). May have a lot to do with original purchase price. This results in longer sales and I've seen listings expire and go off the market unsold, owners waiting to re-list later perhaps under better conditions or just to get that new listing exposure again. I've also seen price drops that eventually help with the sale.

I'm not familiar with the market in STX except that it's different than on STT.

Proximity to being in a prestigious school district is not a factor here nor there, tho proximity to school of your choice and your work does play an important role.

It really depends on what someone is looking for and what price range they're looking in.

If STX is where you want to be, I'd contact a STX Realtor to answer your questions. Chris Hanley and Kim Lucas have good reputations.

When we moved back to STX 4 years ago, we sold two houses in the states. Even though we had lived here throughout the '90's, I STILL do no know where on STX I want to buy! But, I do know I would not consider a house on or very, very close to the beach. My friends that have owned there were extremely grateful their house sold in almost 3 years on the market.

I asked my friend if she'd ever live on a beach or that close to the water again and she said please have her head examined if she did. Maintenance is much greater near the beach. Get a great view and a "wave machine" if you need the ocean sound to lull you to sleep!

I've leased two houses here that were on the market for over 500k and they are still on the market 2-3 years later. Both were great houses with awesome views and swimming pools. As a former Realtor, my advise is to come, lease, then make a permanent decision. Over the past 20 years I've met and said good-bye to probably close to a hundred people who had your dream! Some make it for a few years, others only a few months! Take advice from this forum where people here have the experience so you won't have to make their mistakes with regret later. As said above, island living isn't for everyone! HGTV glamorizes island living, but, when you live here, it isn't a vacation everyday!

Not until happy hour anyway.
Or maybe everyother day at least *-)

I think you are missing the easiest solution that will:

1) Alleviate the need to purchase immediately.
2) Retain your tax options.
3) Allow time to determine where you want to live on STX, or if you really want to be here at all.
4) Ensures no value is lost in your existing (desirable) property,
And 5) is likely to be expense-neutral.

Simply sell your existing property under a lease with option to purchase at 12 months. This ticks all the boxes.

Been here and rented for 5 years and bought a house up the hill from the beach and yes it does get salt air. We rinse the cars down every other day, spray the outside of the house once a week, wipe everything down once a week. It is a pain in the butt and we knew it going in and love it, i grew up in a beach house. The pleasure is worth all the pain as Jimmy Buffet sang. As long as we keep up the maintenance we will be OK. Yeas I know it will fry your electronics, we already lost a TV (it was old anyway). I'm sure I'll get the "wait 5 years then check back" comments about living at the beach. We rented a few houses around and decided this was for us. It's all personal preference.

WOW sailor - I would go INSANE. Im way too ocd for that much salt creep. What about on the beds? My computers are how I make a living so Ive never want dot love that close to the wata. I've always loved places with a killer ocean VIEW but way up high. Even on STX on a big hill with pier view at least although nothing like my old STT views of down islands.

The cleaning has just become part of the routine.We keep the bedroom closed up so it's minimal. My wife works from home and we keep the computers locked away in a sealed drawer after hours.

Thank you everyone for sharing your thoughts and insights!

What I'm not seeing on here is that if you want to come here and buy a home within 2 years you will need to have 100% cash to pay for your home.

(Hello everyone! I fell off the face of the earth after moving here with the family, right as Danny & Erika hit. The job, family, and of course STX exploring got in the way, but more on that later!!)

My husband and I moved to STX a little over a year ago. We sold our home in So Cal. and came here thinking that with a 20% down payment and a teaching job (public school aka government job) and a solid house payment history in CA we'd be able to go to a bank/mortgage lender and get a loan to buy a home. Alas, that is not how it works. You must have a solid job history here (2 years at least), good credit, and at least 20% down. So unless you have the money to pay cash up front, you won't be buying a home if you are going the traditional route.

However, that is not to say you can't buy a home in an less conventional way. My husband and I were blessed to find a home here on STX to rent that we fell in love with. Lucky for us the owners were willing to not only willing to sell it to us , they also owned the house outright and they offered owner financing. So now we are the happy home owners of a house with an amazing view thanks to a wonderful couple we met on this message board! (Thanks Juanita!!)

So before you worry about how long it may take you to sell a home here, first you need to see if you will be able to buy.

It's always a good idea to get pre-approved for a mortgage loan.

You need to show income/ability to repay, (your last 3 income tax returns, W-2 from employer, income to debt ratio) in addition to savings, good credit report, etc. plus having the 20% down.

Actually, it's news to me that you needed to have a minimum 2 year job history here as I've sold homes to statesiders that have qualified for a loan without that as a requirement. I'll have to ask one of the loan officers I deal with. At least, it wasn't an issue in the past that I'm aware of.

It's good to know that you have qualified for a mortgage loan in advance and how much the bank is willing to lend before starting the house hunting process. It's disappointing for all concerned to have your heart set on a property and find out it's out of the price range you qualify for or that you don't qualify at all.

Many sellers, in fact, request that a buyer be prequalified prior to viewing a property.

Glad everything worked out so well for you, klpmtm.
Congrats!

And depends on the mortgage company. Some are great to deal with and others.. uggghh and want to charge exorbitant fees. I had one company take 8 weeks to get a commitment letter from and another 1 week and the fees were 1/2. Shop around and look at their reviews online. I usually do, but went with my realtors recommendation this time. Big mistake. But in the end it all turned out well.

And depends on the mortgage company. Some are great to deal with and others.. uggghh and want to charge exorbitant fees. I had one company take 8 weeks to get a commitment letter from and another 1 week and the fees were 1/2. Shop around and look at their reviews online. I usually do, but went with my realtors recommendation this time. Big mistake. But in the end it all turned out well.

Would you share the name of the "good" one?