Gary Keller made an excellent observation in his book "Shift" when he remarked, "The moment the media declares a "real estate shift,", it's as if the market just got doused in a cold shower.  The result is fearful buyers, pickier buyers, and eventually fewer buyers.  Cautious consumers appear willing to let good deals die and great opportunities pass them by in hopes of getting a steal -  they start missing the forest for the trees.  Wary of paying too much, buyers go too far and begin to offer too little...."  The problem for most buyers is - who can you trust?  The media hype that the real estate market is a bust is only true in certain areas of the country.  Real Estate is so local, you can't just generalize it across the country.

Can a buyer trust a real estate agent to guide them to make a wise decision??  We hope so.  Too many buyers ARE missing out on a great deal - THE INTEREST RATES!!  THE TAX CREDIT!!  As noted in The Advocate this week, the Baton Rouge market continues to increase in value - making us one of the top rated real estate markets in the country.  What is to prevent us from having the crash that Miami, Phoenix, and California experienced?  First off, those markets sky rocketed upward so fast it was just unbelievable!  I know agents in those markets and there were no houses to be found, people were paying $600,000 for a house and then tearing it down to build new!!  The Greater Baton Rouge Real Estate market NEVER experienced that - including during Kartina.  Our market has corrected itself since then, but buyers seem to still be reluctant to believe that they can't 'steal' a good house.  Just recently I sold two properties - one in the upper $200's and one in the $400K range, the first week on the market - with multiple offers.  Both were good houses, priced well, but we had buyers make crazy offers on them, and then were disappointed when someone else ended up with the home of their dreams.

We tell the buyers we work with, if you like this house and think it's good, why do you think there is not anybody but you thinking the same thing!  When you find the house you want to live in, then make a serious offer and get the house!!!  Take advantage of these fabulous interest rates!!  Have your Realtor run the latest market analysis of the area to show you the value of the house.  For the Greater Baton Rouge area, sellers are negotiating an average of less than 3% off the list price of a house!!!!  Understand this when you put in an offer!

This is one of the best opportunities to own a home in the Great Baton Rouge market.  Call us and WE'LL GUIDE YOU to find the perfect home for you!