Since I’ve been a homowner, landlord and tenant in my neighborhood for the past 6 years, I follow the real estate market pretty closely. I recently noticed that there was a condo on Realtor.com listed at $264,900.  Since I bought my 2nd condo in 2003 for $270,000, I was curious to find out more info on it.

I emailed my friend who’s an agent and she sent me the list details. Apparently its bank-owned. The previous owners bought in 2001 for $170,000 and refinanced it last year for $260,000. The mortgage company has it listed at $265k to break-even on it.

These condos were sold at a peak price of $375,000. I sold both of mine on either sides of the peak at around $350,000 each. A sale price of $265,000 represents a 30% drop from the peak. I’d be amazed if it sold at the asking price.

If I was in a hurry to buy property, I’d be tempted to make a low-ball offer. When I bought my condo in 2001 and again in 2003, there was usually only 1 for sale at a time and usually several buyers. Right now, its the opposite, several for sale and not a single buyer!

Even though the pricing looks good, I expect things to get considerably worse.