The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 16 No. 39 - July 27, 2016

REAL ESTATE

The psychology of home ownership

 

About a month ago right after July 4th, I wrote a column supporting the valuable assets of owning your own home and the freedom it promotes. Being a homeowner is good for society, good for our self esteem and good for our tax bracket, but is the process of buying and selling good for our emotional well being?

Buying and selling the home we live in is one of the most emotional factors in our lives. You literally fall in love with your home and even though it represents a major financial investment most homeowners view their home as much more than that. So how do you control the emotional aspect of the buying and selling process so that you don't go completely off the psychology rails?

First of all if you're buying a home, falling in love with a property at first sight is the worst thing you can do; save the falling in love part till after you own the property. You need to understand there are no perfect properties, especially in the current environment we're in where there is a shortage of inventory. Starting the process with a firm wish list will only serve to raise your emotional level even higher when your exact desires can't be met. Focus in on the most important part of buying property, the location.

Families frequently move to provide a larger and more comfortable home for their families but sometimes that "forever home" comes with a price and that's frequently location. If the house you think is perfect is away from your friends, your children's friends and creates a longer commute to work, maybe it's not really the perfect house. Commuting to work is one of life's stress buttons that is really difficult to measure, but if your chosen location requires you to spend more time in your car than watching your son's soccer game it may be time to reconsider.

It's also easy for buyers who are infatuated with a home to overspend by putting more money down on a higher priced home in order to qualify for a mortgage, resulting in a shortage of cash. There are all kinds of expenses that are attached to buying a home from furniture to lawn mowers - it's important to calculate what these items will cost and set aside adequate cash.

Sellers, of course, are the exact opposite of buyers and have a whole different set of psychological challenges. The biggest mistake sellers make is their expectation of financial return.

Sellers naturally don't want to sell their property at a loss and usually want to see a profit. They will try to justify a higher price based on what they paid for the property or how many improvements they put into the property. Unfortunately, the current market value has nothing to do with any of that.

Sellers make the big mistake of being fixated on a number the home should sell for either because of what they think are comparable properties or just because that's what they want to realize from the sale. This is called "mental equity" and it represents the amount of money the seller wants to walk away with regardless of how relevant it is to the marketplace. This lack of flexibility on the seller's part will only delay finding a buyer, creating even more stress in an already stressful event.

American homeowners are some of the most optimistic people on the planet. In spite of the financial downturn and bursting of the real estate bubble, almost all homeowners feel confident that their homes will increase in value and are a good investment. It's been called the "money illusion" and it is a very powerful psychology which probably keeps the real estate market afloat. Whether you're a buyer or seller, I guarantee you the process will be one of the most emotional of your life; don't make it worse by being inflexible.

Real Estate Transactions
Real estate transfers of January-February 2016

Sponsored by Alan Galletto Island Real Estate

Sold Date | List Price | Sold Price | Address | Provision | Property Style

Anna Maria

2016-05-12 525,000 502,500 315 Hammock Cir 1652 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-19 749,000 693,000 315 Hardin Ave 1472 2 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-19 995,000 900,000 733 Holly Rd 2678 75x110 5 Br/4 Ba SFR
2016-05-09 949,000 925,000 311 Pine Ave 2160 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-27 1,395,000 1,350,000 107 Willow Ave 2880 50x110 5 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-02 1,595,000 1,500,000 115 Park Ave 2120 4 Br/3.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-12 1,849,000 1,700,000 812 Jacaranda Rd 2635 5 Br/2.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-06 1,950,000 1,750,000 913 N Shore Dr 2421 4 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-02 3,195,000 2,700,000 810 S Bay Blvd 4008 4 Br/4 Ba SFR

Bradenton Beach

2016-05-11 699,900 680,000 100 7th St S 1452 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-24 1,495,000 1,450,000 2119 Avenue C 2946 5 Br/4 Ba SFR
2016-05-12 1,895,000 1,700,000 2310 Canasta Dr 2669 3 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-20 1,870,00 162,000 1603 Gulf Dr N #30 380 1 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-20 199,990 190,000 1603 Gulf Dr N #16 540 1 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-19 259,900 249,900 117 7th St N #10 864 2 Br/1.5 Ba Condo
2016-05-31 279,000 275,000 1325 Gulf Dr N #126 675 2 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-31 289,000 291,000 1325 Gulf Dr N #123 675 2 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-26 379,900 355,000 1801 Gulf Dr N #175 1080 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-24 539,000 485,000 2319 Avenue C #200 1698 3 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-20 740,000 675,000 2600 Gulf Dr N #44 1179 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-16 289,900 280,000 2601 Gulf Dr N #S21 520 3 Br/2 Ba Mobile

Cortez

2016-05-26 1,395,000 1,268,600 12914 Yacht Club Pl 4039 4 Br/4.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-26 1,750,000 1,450,000 12901 42nd Ter W 3287 3 Br/3.5 Ba SFR

Holmes Beach

2016-05-02 489,900 442,000 226 85th St 1689 3 Br/3 Ba SFR, REO / Bank Owned
2016-05-02 659,000 600,000 216 68th St 1258 2 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-03 635,000 635,000 304 60th St #A 1150 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-03 675,000 655,000 524 69th St 1803 80x113 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-24 679,000 665,000 309 58th St #A 1487 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-02 739,000 689,000 309 59th St #B 2083 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-12 735,000 715,000 313 58th St #B 1254 4 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-09 749,000 725,000 514 56th St 1930 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
2016-05-20 829,000 790,000 604 Baronet Ln 1948 4 Br/2.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-12 1,124,999 1,025,000 520 72nd St 2647 3 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-27 1,200,000 1,050,000 3109 Avenue E 2329 4 Br/3.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-13 1,199,000 1,150,519 603 Baronet Ln 2717 95x130 4 Br/4 Ba SFR
2016-05-16 1,379,000 1,255,000 205 79th St 2600 5 Br/4.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-20 1,399,900 1,300,000 691 Key Royale Dr 2055 3 Br/3 Ba SFR
2016-05-04 1,550,000 1,550,000 119 81st St 2196 Br/5.5 Ba SFR
2016-05-11 250,000 225,000 600 Manatee Ave#208 888 1 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-23 237,000 225,000 600 Manatee Ave #11 4896 1 Br/1 Ba Condo
2016-05-27 279,000 269,000 6300 Flotilla Dr #81 1151 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-17 295,000 270,000 600 Manatee Ave #220 1187 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-13 359,900 354,000 3705 E Bay Dr #109 1121 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
2016-05-06 480,000 455,000 6309 Gulf Dr 1301 3 Br/2 Ba Townhome
2016-05-16 519,900 505,000 6250 Holmes Blvd #69 1536 3 Br/2.5 Ba Townhome
2016-05-20 698,000 667,500 303 64th St #B 85x110 3 Br/2 Ba Villa
2016-05-31 449,000 380,000 202 Haverkos Ct #A 1863 97x80 Duplex
2016-05-06 1,700,000 1,625,000 2812 Avenue E #A 1680 50x100 Duplex

 

Source: Mid Florida Multiple Listing Service


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