If I sound annoyed, it's because I am! I don't know where Dan Dorfman has been for the last ten years, since he unceremoniously left Money Magazine and CNBC after allegations of insider stock trading, but he is clearly reaching for readers by writing an article about Hamptons real estate. After speaking to perhaps the best broker in the Hamptons, Diane Saatchi, who made some great points about the market (that Dorfman seemed to ignore) he then goes on to quote this so-called "buyer" who is going around offering $995,000 on homes listed at $1.59MM. These people have reportedly been looking for three years. They'll be looking for a great deal longer unless they get realistic with their offers. These are they types that work real estate agents who don't value their own time to exhaustion, and then end up buying a fizbo. They either feel that they are entitled to something they aren't, or don't really have the money to buy and are lonely, and they know that real estate agents love new customers like St. Bernards like skiers with broken legs. Like I said, if I sound annoyed, it's because I am!
In this market, it's not uncommon for properties to sell at 95-102% of asking price. Granted, the number of propeties selling since late 2005 has been down, but the median and average prices continue to rise steadily. When things do slow down in this market, actual selling prices MIGHT drop to 89-95% of ask, which happened in 2001 and again in 2003 for a few months.
So...stick to things you know about, Dan. To those "buyers" he quoted, they better keep the rental catalogues handy. md
Hamptons Is Cooling - June 16, 2006 - The New York Sun
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