Vacant Houses - Empty Promises for Sellers

Check out the story below about the growing ranks of vacant houses on the market these days. One Realtor quoted says almost half of his homes are currently vacant.

Your guides hadn't realized but at this moment, of our re-sale listings (not new construction) four out of six - 67% - of our listings are vacant with homeowners living elsewhere for various reasons.

From the Chicago Tribune on Feb. 8, 2007:

The pileup of vacant homes becomes a factor in market dynamics, putting more pressure on prices and, short-term, prolonging the slump.

"The longer homes for sale remain vacant, the more desperate on average become the sellers," said Anirban Basu, an economist who is chairman and chief executive of Sage Policy Group Inc. in Baltimore.

"The growing number of vacant homes means more sellers out there are ready to be realistic about the market to drop prices."
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