Best time to BUY

Now is the Best Time to Buy a Vancouver Home in at Least Two Years: Agents

Right now is the best time to make an offer on a Vancouver property in at least the past two years, as there are great ways to take advantage of current uncertainty in the market, according to brothers Adam and Matt Scalena of Scalena Real Estate.

Speaking to the Real Estate Therapist show on Roundhouse Radio 98.3FM August 13, the brothers and East Vancouver REALTORS® for Century 21 said that the market has shifted just in the past few months, and that has opened up enormous opportunities for would-be home buyers.

“Have a good think about your goals. If you are looking for a home to live in and you’re going to be there for five to 10 years, this is the best opportunity to buy in at least the past two years,” said Matt Scalena.

“The reason for that is that there are fewer offers right now. I just negotiated an offer with subjects at well below list price, which felt strange in the context of the last two years. So really think about what your goals are. If you’re looking to buy and flip in the next two years, I’d maybe say hold off to see what the market is going to do.

“But if this is for your home, it’s a fantastic time to be testing the market, and by that what we mean is, to be aggressive in your offers.

“We’ve moved very quickly, just in the past few weeks or so, into a market in which you’re not bidding and competing with other buyers as much, so you do actually have some leverage. As far as the general mood, there are sellers out there who are pretty nervous, rightly or wrongly, and they’ve bought and have to move. So, especially with all the talk about the changing market, now is the time to really come in low with your offer, maybe roll the dice, and take advantage [of sellers’ nervousness]."

Opportunity Could Be Brief

Adam said, “We’ve been in such an aggressive seller’s market for as long as we can remember but what we’re seeing is that there’s a potentially quite brief opportunity right now – because we can only speak to the current market, we have no idea what will be happening come the fall – but on the ground level there is an opportunity for buyers right now.

“But we should pull back and say obviously there are different segments of the market that are more active – for example, I’m still seeing a lot of one-bedroom condos downtown that are still seeing multiple offers, so it really depends on what type of property and what price bracket you’re looking at.

“In general, what you have is an opportunity to show some patience, to see a lot of properties, to try offers, to see what might work, maybe actually get a home inspection, as opposed to the mentality of three to six months ago [when buyers had to move much more quickly].”

Matt added, “It’s kind of ironic, as it’s been such a sellers’ market, but put yourself in the mind of seller right now. People are getting very nervous and that brings buyers the opportunity.”

Joannah Connolly, REW.ca
August 17, 2016

Information obtained from REW.ca