From Elizabeth Weintraub,
Your Guide to Home Buying / Selling.
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Everybody wants to know where real estate is headed in 2007. Will prices continue to fall as they have in most areas of the country or will the American market rebound? Will interest rates remain stable? Will 2007 be a good time to buy or sell real estate or should we all head down to Mexico instead and check out Donald Trump's Baja resort south of Tijuana? Based on current market forecasts and real estate economic facts and trends of 2006, here is my professional home buying and selling prediction for next year.

(1) More Single Women Will Buy Homes Than Ever Before

Single women already make up a larger percentage of home buyers year after year. More single women are saying "no" to marriage but "yes" to a mortgage. They are trading Prince Charming for walk-in closets, underground parking or a garage, and tax deductions.

(2) Home Prices Will Remain Soft

Buyers will wonder if they should get off the fence and buy now or if they should wait. Across most of America, there are no indications that we'll see double-digit appreciation for a while and, in fact, if prices haven't fallen in your neighborhood yet, they most likely will in 2007.

(3) Agents Will Negotiate Record Numbers of Counter Offers

Finding a real estate agent who will negotiate for you as a seller or a buyer is going to be more important in 2007 than it has been in previous years. Sellers will not accept offers as written and will issue a counter. Buyers will not accept the seller's first counter and will issue a counter of their own. It will not be unusual to see five or more counters per transaction before an agreement is reached.

(4) Buyers Will Pass By Overpriced Homes

Buyers are becoming more educated. They know when the price is right, and overpriced homes will be scratched off their list of possible homes to consider. Buyers view sellers with overpriced listings as inflexible and not serious about selling. With large numbers of well priced homes available to them, buyers won't waste time on sellers who refuse to be reasonable about pricing.

(5) Buyers Will Demand Upscale Features

As more inventory comes on the market, buyers will have more to choose from before making an offer and will gravitate toward homes that require no updating or costly remodels. Buyers will expect homes to be turnkey and ready to occupy. Kitchen and bathroom remodels will fetch top dollar over homes without updates.

(6) Sellers Will Hire Home Stagers

Some sellers will be lucky and find a real estate agent who can offer home staging services, but many sellers, to be competitive among other listings, will hire a professional stager before putting their home on the market. Furniture rental companies will set up accounts offering 30- to 90-day financing at zero interest and no payments to accommodate home sellers who want to pay staging fees at closing and not upfront.

(7) Agents Will Take Overpriced Listings

Just because the market has changed is no reason for agents to wise up and stop taking overpriced listings or to stop hurting their seller's chances to sell. In fact, many agents won't be able to afford to pay MLS dues and will be fighting for survival, so they will continue to inflate home prices in hopes of beating out a competitor for a listing. This battle will help to retire agents who shouldn't be in the business in the first place.

(8) Virtual Tours Will Gain Popularity

Online listings without virtual tours will be passed over. Virtual tours will gain popularity because buyers will demand them. Like the old MLS books without a photo, an online listing without a virtual tour will be a non-entity and ignored. In addition, buyers will want audio with the visual.

(9) More than 50% of Listings Will Feature a Price Reduction Within 30 days

Sellers can do everything else right but fail miserably if the home is priced too high. The number one reason why properties don't sell is price. Anything will sell for the right price. The first trick is to figure out what that price should be before putting your home on the market. The second trick is to figure out when to reduce the price.

(10) Buyers Will Be More Selective When Choosing an Agent

Choosing the right agent is the single most important factor when buying or selling real estate. However some people make the mistake of choosing a DNA agent (family related) or a neighbor, without ever thinking about the main reason to hire an agent or how to go about determining the fit for themselves. As appreciation slows, sellers and buyers alike will be more discriminating and ask the tough questions to further protect their hard-earned dollars.

And here are my 2008 Real Estate Predictions