"First-time home buyers turn fussy"

March 9, 2011
The above quotation was the heading of an op-ed piece by Kenneth R. Harney in the March 6, Los Angeles Times newspaper. It caught my attention because it reflected what real estate agents are experiencing as they show present day prospective buyers homes that are for sale. Since the newly constructed homes are rather few and far between due to the halt in new residential development, agents are mostly showing previously lived in homes.
In a recent survey of 300 first-time buyers, 87% said that "finding a move-in ready home is important." This desire may in part be due to the real fact that it generally takes two incomes to support a mortgage. Thus these potential home buyers are working at least five days a week and do not want to spend their off days doing fix-up chores.
However, the article cites an agent in Reston, VA who wrote that"some shoppers are so picky that they walk out of well-priced homes solely because of relatively minor imperfections such as:
The kitchen appliances are by different manufacturers.
There are no granite counters - despite the fact that the house is a modest priced starter home.
A carpet needs replacing or the color doesn't match their furniture.
Wall colors are "wrong" such as white, when for today's tastes, they should be a warmer hue.
At one time it was the case that home buyers accepted the fact that a previously owned home would require some "fixing" to meet their particular style, they seemed more interested in location and floor plans than in the particular decor of the existing home.
Home sellers cannot just push aside these picky, picky buyers. Certainly not if they wish to sale their home in our present real estate market.