Finding homes to buy with so few listings on the market

The past few years there have been too few homes on the market in Northern Virginia and in many other parts of the country.  The situation became even more squeezed in the spring of 2023 with many areas seeing only about half the number of listings compared to the previous year.  This has lead to a lot of frustration among potential home buyers as they lose out on houses even when they bid over list price and waive home inspections and appraisals.  For our clients looking to purchase a home over the last several years we've been finding off-market homes for them to purchase.  Here are a few we've been able to find these.

Unsuccessful Past Sales.  Even thought the market has favored sellers, not all houses have sold over the last couple of years.  Typically houses don't sell because they are priced too high.  If we have a client looking in a specific area we find homes that were on the market but failed to sell and contact the owners to see if they'd be interested in selling off market.  Sometimes these owners would love to sell, but don't want to go through the process of putting their house on the market.  These can be a good opportunity for our clients to purchase a home.

Agent Forums.  We are part of a couple of online communities of real estate agents who post houses that are about to go on the market.  Listing agents do this when they have clients who are in life situations where showing the house is difficult for the owner.  Many of these owners will sell their houses before going on the open market if they get a fair offer.  As buyer agents, we like this situation because there is less competition for our clients compared to houses listed in the MLS.

Postcards to Owners.  We get about a 2-3% response rate when we send a very specific post card to home owners.  We do this for our buyer clients who are looking for something very specific such as a specific number of bedrooms in a specific condo building.  If there are over about 50 units of a type our clients are seeking, we usually get a response from an owner wanting to sell.  This can be a huge benefit to both parties if we can work out a sale.

If you or someone you know is looking for an agent to help them find a home in this tight market, send us an email at [email protected] to get the process started.