Hmm.

And you may be able to do that.

If you hire an independent appraiser, um, you can get what's called a broker price opinion from a real estate managing broker.

Um, there's some other ways that you can go about getting that, but you...

Th- I think one of the things I hear people saying is, you know, like, "Call the county auditor to complain." Well, good for you, but that's not gonna do anything.

You have to factually show that they were incorrect.

So you can request a copy of their appraisal so that you have it.

Hmm.

Wow

... for a buyer right now.

But that is also down 9.2% from a year ago.

So people are putting down less money than they did last year, but they're still putting down quite a bit, right? That $27,100, and that can come from a variety of sources.

It may come from gift funds, from savings.

It, it, that's not just first-time buyers, so that could be that they're moving up and they have equity from their last home.

So there's a lot of ways that that $27,100 could be coming into play.

But I wanna just pause there for a moment because is putting money down or more money down always a smart move? And what, I guess, are the decision points that you consider when you counsel a prospective buyer on how much to put down and how much to put aside?

But where does the down payment come from if, if my money's tied up in my current house and I'm trying to buy up?

Absolutely.

So it depends on how you want to structure it.

If you do not have the down payment cash for the next purchase, you can, with some programs, use the equity from the first home either on paper or with a line of credit.

So it just depends on the situation, which lender we go through, how it's, you know, how that works.

Um, there are also bridge loans.

The problem is we, we want to make sure you don't have to qualify for both house payments, right? So I really just have to talk to that particular buyer and see where's their income, where's their credit score, what's the timeline look like, and we have so many options.

That's-

Why does this matter right now?

Absolutely.

So you've kind of got some opportunities, and I know a lot of people hear the negative news of, you know, houses are sitting on the market longer, and rates are higher, and they think, "Oh, this is a horrible time to buy." When people are telling you it's a horrible time to buy, it's actually probably a really good time to buy.

And the reason for that is because you have a lot less competition in the market, and there's a lot more flexibility for you, especially if you're tight on cash or you need a lower rate.

Um, sellers are gonna be willing to work with you a little bit more.

So if there's a house that's been sitting longer than the median, and w-we can, you know, talk about that.

Redfin is saying that mid-year, we're looking at average days on market of about forty-eight point two in Columbus.

How do I know if a house that's been listed forever or a long time is a deal or a problem house?