Finding Off-Market Properties to Purchase

With many buyers losing out on multiple bidding wars in search of their dream home, life as a home buyer has become frustrating. Who would have thought that finding a home to purchase would be so difficult? Very few people thought that the pandemic would bring about an extreme shortage of homes to buy. Unfortunately, for home buyers entering the market it has happened.

What can a buyer do? Some are now turning their attention to off-market properties. But how do you find off-market homes to buy? There are a number of avenues you can try to potentially land the kind of home you really want to be. You should realize upfront, however, that is isn't going to be easy. There may even be some competition for off-market properties as well.

Before we get into finding an off market property you need to understand the definition as "off-market properties" can have two meanings. For purposes of what we are discussing here off market does not mean that a home was listed for sale and now is under contract between a buyer and seller.

The term off market can be confusing because many real estate sites label their properties "off market" when an offer to purchase has been accepted. What we are talking about are homes that are not officially for sale.

It is possible to find homes that are not listed on the MLS. Many of these properties are referred to as "pocket listings". A pocket listing is when a real estate agency keeps a listing in-house without letting everyone else know about it. Sometime a homeowner might prefer for various reasons to keep their home sale private.

If you can find a very well connected local real estate agent they might know about a few of these non-MLS listings. In the article referenced above at Maximum Real Estate Exposure, there are also references to ten additional methods for finding off-market homes. Each of these methods provides an opportunity to find a home that others might not have access to.

With inventory is low it can call for desperate measures to find that home for you and your family. Take a look at the article and it might trigger some ideas, you may never have given any thought to.

If you know a friend of family member who has desperately been trying to find a home, consider passing the information on to them. You might be the reason they land their next home.