I received two phone calls from buyers last week. They were calling me on a sign in front of a South Miami townhouse I have listed for sale. Both of them wanted to see it, neither was working with a Realtor. I explained to them that the townhouse was under contract but that I would be happy to show it. One of them wanted to see it. When I asked her how she found it, she said “driving around”. After I showed it to her, she said it was exactly what she had been looking for, too bad it was under contract and could I let her know if the deal fell through. I told her I would be happy to and asked her if she wanted me to help her find a home. She said no, she would rather continue to drive around and use her Trulia app.
The second buyer was also a “drive by”. He said he had been looking in the area for over a year (!) and still hadn’t found anything. I tried to explain to him that by driving around, he is missing opportunities and will probably always be late to the good deals. The South Miami townhouse had seven offers on it in the first week. I told him Realtors have applications on their phones that notify them as soon as a property comes on the market, which allows their buyers to get a jump start on seeing and presenting offers. He said he would rather keep driving around…. Now these “buyers” may just be habitual real estate shoppers who just like to drive around and look at real estate. If you are a serious buyer, you really need to be working with a Realtor. In addition to being notified as soon as a property that meets your criteria comes on the market, you will be saving a lot of time and gas!