Buying and Selling an Ugly House in Stockton has never been easier and if you own one, then I’d encourage you to read this article because today I am going to dissect the market and tell you where to look for cash buyers.

A Look at the Stockton Real Estate Market

It’s an understatement to say that the whole of the Stockton real estate market has changed dramatically since 2008. Prices have risen, (across all market segments) and most homeowners are, for the most part, no longer underwater, foreclosures are way down and there is equity back in the housing market. What’s not to like?

This goes for people that own distressed and ugly houses as well.  The difference between now and then was that 10 years ago in order to find a cash buyer for an ugly house you needed to know someone that knew someone and maybe they could be found online.

Or, it cost you in terms of fees and commissions because you called a real estate agent and they called me. You were happy to pay them because you unloaded an unwanted problem house, or as the banks call them… an unwanted or underperforming asset. The real benefit of the internet has been the availability of information to anyone with the desire to find it. If you are reading this article its proof positive of the sheer power of the internet, google and the consumer demanding content and information to help solve their real estate issues.

In today’s world it is a different story and later in this article I’ll tell you how to find all of the cash buyers you need. So, if you own an ugly house that you have no intention to fix, update or remodel,  your options are limited to all cash buyers (unless you are willing to provide financing) and you will not sell it conventionally with a real estate agent unless you just want to pay a real estate agent a commission.

Even though selling these types of properties have a limited audience, specifically real estate investors, they are always there. Unlike the conventional House buyer whose purchase is one and done… the real estate investors will buy more. Realistically, however, the number of buyers interested in purchasing these types of houses has remained relatively static over the past several years. Cash buyers come and go and each house has its own characteristics that either make it desirable or not.

Understanding the Technology to find Buyers

Think of it this way, technology has broadened the base search, so it’s no longer just local investors that you may be finding. In fact, even with all of the technology,  it remains difficult to quantify the number of cash buyers interested in the distressed housing market at any given time, as many investors are no longer participating at the levels they did just 5 years ago. Maybe they bought the bargains that they wanted and retreated. Maybe they just dont believe that market prices will continue to climb and they have retreated because they dont want to get stuck holding like happened during the last recession. Maybe they dont see an exit strategy.

That really doesn’t matter though, because there are plenty of real estate investors that are bullish on this market  and I am still buying as many as I can. I believe that every house has a value and is worth something more or less than it was yesterday. That may be an obvious statement, but to an investor it is important because buying right is what determines weather on not you make money in the long run. It always happens for investors on the buy side of things and sellers need to understand that, because in today’s real estate market that is more true then ever.

Supply and Demand

So where does that distressed and ugly housing  conversation start? I think it begins with supply and demand and with the inventory of houses currently on the market. But even that may not be accurate measurement, because the distressed housing market is not really representative of what’s available on the Realtors Multiple Listing Service. That is largely because ugly houses are not generally widely listed on the MLS or anywhere else for that matter. So all we can do is look at the overall market and surmise from that data, what is happening in that underserved distressed and Ugly Stockton housing market.

According to the Realtors big database… Metrolist, the inventory of houses for sale on the market today is still limited to just a 3 months of supply. When you consider that most experts agree that a healthy real estate market has a 5 – 6 month worth of supply, it means that we are somewhere in between a sellers’ and buyer’s market, but definitely leaning towards seller.

So if housing in all market segments, is in short supply, then why isn’t it purely a sellers market? The answer lies in the data that we see from buyers. The market is a bit skittish right now, because not every housing segment has seen the same boost in pricing over the past 9 years. I believe it’s in part because the uptick in pricing is really limited for the  houses that can be sold on the open market and that qualify for FHA, VA or conventional financing. This is the market that includes the houses that are already pretty and in move in ready condition… were talking about the houses that don’t need any substantial repairs.

Now consider that, 98% of all home buyers looking to purchase a house will need financing to actually make that purchase. Doesn’t it stand to reason that they rely solely on a bank or mortgage company to make that happen. And therein lies the rub: No bank or mortgage company is going to loan anyone money for a house that needs substantial repairs. In fact the lenders that offer conventional financing are even tightening their qualifications and it’s no longer good enough for the buyer to qualify, the banks are also requiring the houses meet certain livability standards to qualify as they would have to with other government-backed loans.

“Let the buyer beware” and “Sold As Is” are relics of the past, especially if there is a lender involved.

So here is the real catch. The Banks have figured out that even though the people that would want to buy an ugly house, don’t have the skills necessary to fix that ugly house. That means very few loans are being made to buy them and if they are they are very expensive hard money loans. Most serious investors know that the high cost of that money makes it a loan of last resort.

It also stands to reason that without financing available, most buyers in any market will not buy a house that is ugly or needs significant repairs because that involves too much RISK. This couldn’t be more true in today’s Stockton Ugly House Market.

It used to be that conventional buyers could get conventional loans to buy these distressed houses, but the rules in lending have changed over the past several years and unless there are some dramatic changes to those rules, the standards applied today, require the house to be livable and are every bit as strict as those applied to VA and FHA Standards. The buyers market just shrank again thanks to banking regulations.

So if 98% of all buyers require financing, then it stands to reason only 2% remain that COULD have the cash on hand and might be interested in purchasing that specific House. But it is worse than that, because most buyers with cash are NOT buying your house, because they are NOT investors. You can see how the universe shrinks fast and  It also stands to reason that unless there is some sort of incentive for the buyer, your house may not be the one that is purchased.

Other Factors such as Days on Market

So many other factors that I think it’s shaping up to be a problem because, during the past 4 months, we have seen another worrisome trend; the days on the market have increased substantially. It used to be that you could list a house and it would go into contract within 30 to 45 days if marketed properly. Today we are looking at 3 to 6 months and no one is predicting that to decrease any time soon.

You might be asking; so doesn’t that make it a bad time for me to sell my Ugly House? The simple answer is YES and NO. It can be a great time to sell that Ugly house, but you need to understand who you are selling that house to.

Related Article How financing impact…..

So now we hit the real story. The number of Buyers of the distressed and Ugly house Market in Stockton has not changed much in 10 years. The truth is that there are a lot of people looking for bargains but they are not the same people with the cash to close on the sale. How do I know? It’s very Simple… they call me and ask me to buy them for them, or partner with them In most cases I just pay them a small fee to get out of the way. They are known as wholesalers.

Selling an UGLY house in any market requires expertise and I am not talking about a real estate agent that will use your house as a pocket listing to turn around and call a cash home buyer like me and collect the 5% to 6% commission from you. Here is a little secret… we generally DON’T buy houses that way.

I am a professional Cash Home buyer that specializes in buying houses in Stockton that are distressed…  I mean distressed and Ugly houses that need work.

You might think that finding me is hard to do, but I can assure you that it is not difficult at all. If you have access to a smart phone, Tablet or Computer just go to the internet and “Google” these keyword phrases;

• We Buy Houses Stockton
• We Buy Houses That are Ugly Stockton
• Cash Buyers of Ugly Houses Stockton
• Who Buys Houses that are Ugly Stockton
• Who will buy my UGLY House Stockton
• Westbrook REI
• Peter Westbrook, real estate investor

I can also assure you that that search will yield a list of the cash buyers. Most will make you an all cash offer and the majority of them will be very competitive. Ugly houses have a specific market and unless you are talking to the right people that buy these types of houses, you are wasting your time.

But, the worst mistake an owner of an Ugly House in Stockton can do is do NOTHING at all, because your ugly house is going sit and deteriorate and just get Uglier. Here is another fact. Your UGLY house will never be worth more than it is now unless you do something to improve it. Short of that, it will continue losing value.

The latest statistics on housing purchases saw that only 1 in 5 buyers in the market for real estate can actually qualify to get a new home loan. Think about it. Even if you were to do everything the Real Estate Agent asked you to do to get your house ready for a sale, what are the chances that someone that made an offer on your house could actually qualify for a loan and actually close on the sale.

My name is Peter Westbrook and I am a Real Estate Investor with Westbrook Real Estate Investments and We buy houses in any condition in Stockton, California and we buy houses that are ugly in Stockton.In my experience it is slim and what I see are a lot of frustrated homeowners that have spent thousands of dollars rehabbing a house only to find that it sits. Or worse, they will never get the money back that they spent to get the house ready for the sale.

If you have an unwanted UGLY house, or a house that needs repairs beyond your budget then you can click here to   learn more and I will speak to you personally regarding all of your options.

I have been a real estate investor for 10 years and I can just pay cash for the house. Whatever your unique situation is I can help. Please Call me at 209-481-7780 for a conversation. I believe that in that one call you will be convinced that I can help you and that in Stockton I am the best at what I do.  Pick up the phone and call so we can discuss your real options in today’s Stockton Real Estate Market.