Park City Real Estate Trends

             I recently read a blog post by another Utah real estate agent discussing Buyers in her area that were putting in offers on property that were sure to be accepted by sellers (as they would be the highest priced offers) with the background idea that the property would later not appraise for the offer price and then the seller would lower the price to the appraisal value and settle on that as the selling price.             It is an interesting type of bidding scheme and an idea that probably works well for short sales and bank owned properties in the current national real estate market where appraisers are bearing some of the blame for our financial crisis.             Buyers using the ‘offer high and hope to pay less' tactic are counting on the appraisal coming in lower than the offer price. This will mean that the Buyer can't get their expected loan or that they simply state that they are not willing to "overpay" for the home unless the price is lowered.             Appraisers in Park City currently have a tough time with property appraisals not only because they are under increased scrutiny, but also because there are relatively few sales and therefore finding a comparable property that has sold recently can be tough.             I have seen a few Park City real estate sales recently that were affected by low appraisals. The end result is not always a lower price. In one recent case, the seller did lower the sales price (although not to the appraised price). In another case of an appraisal lower than the agreed upon sales price, the seller just removed the property from the market; effectively stating that they would not sell for what the appraiser had established was market value. The Buyer did subsequently purchase the home at the original offer price.             The Buyer's side tactic of offering over what the buyer wants to pay in hopes of an appraisal effectively lowering the price may or may not work in Park City. It is probably best left to investors that have no emotional attachment to the property they are buying. The YouInParkCity.com group suggests finding a property that you want based on location, features and local amenities. Present an offer that makes sense to you as a buyer. The appraisal may give you an idea of fair market value or it may not. Appraisers only have data as to other "similar" sales, but no two properties are alike. In the end, fair market value can be defined by a willing Seller and a willing Buyer.