Why not use a realtor to help you with comparable properties that are on the market and those that have sold over the past 6 months. That should be a helpful tool in deciding what this home might ultimately appraise for. This information should help you make an informed offer and maybe even get the seller to help you with some closing costs, and therefore you would have less out of pocket expense to close on the home purchase. In todays market homes are seliing well and homes in the $180,000+ range, depending on what they have to offer in square footage and style, are in demand in the area.

Builder in JC. Your attitude is typical of many in the real estate industry near military installations. "They get free untaxed money so let's flood the market with cookie cutter homes and price them the same as custom built homes in other areas" Well I hate to break the news to ya bud but you are going to be sitting on those homes for a long time. I think most service members are aware what they can afford and for some of the prices I have seen on pretty basic homes, I feel that they are pretty silly to not offer lower prices.

By the way the Army is always hiring if you want to come get some of that "FREE" money. Let me know how free you think it is after your 3rd or 4th tour overseas.

I would just like to let you know that I sold a house in 02 in the Junction City area and it is for sale again today for 216,000 that is 100,000 more then when I sold it. If you ask me the housing market in this area is way too high. There is no way that a house can go up in value that fast. In my opinion the real estate agents in this area just too greedy when helping sellers set prices. I am not against making a profit I just don’t think a builder should try to retire from the sale of one house.

LOCAL BUILDERS DID NOT OVERESTIMATE WHAT A SOLDIER COULD BUY. THE MARKET IS JUNCTION CITY IS LOWER ON NEW CONSTRUCTION THAN THE SURROUNDING AREAS. MOST BUYERS EXPECTATIONS ARE WELL IN EXCESS OF THEIR ABILITY TO BUY.

GET REALISTIC ON THE TYPE OF HOME YOU CAN BUY GIVEN YOU INCOME LEVELS.

MILITARY GET A FREE HOUSING ALLOWANCE, NON TAXABLE UNLIKE CIVILIAN WORKERS MAKING THE SAME MONEY.

Casey and Mike are right, my answer to this questions would be another question....Do you have a buyers agent? If you do not have one I would definately recommend getting one and they will be able to accurately advice you on these type of situations. Hoah!

Hi LW,
You are in a very fortunate situation. Buyers are no different than people selling their own homes in Junction City. I represented a buyer last month that bought a home from a builder for nearly $25,000 under the listed selling price.
I would be glad to talk to you about the many opportunities in buying a home in Junction City. Please call me at 1-785-307-2572 anytime or respond by e-mail at your convenience.

Thanks for the contact.

Roland Waechter
35 year Junction City resident.

I would highly recommend you get a buyer's agent. A buyer's agent will be able to work in your best interests and be able to negotiate on your behalf. Builders are often hesitant to lower their prices alot as it will impact comparables for future sales. In lieu of that, you can often get incentives like closing costs or upgrades. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask. If you don't have an agent yet, feel free to contact me and I can refer you to a qualifed rep in your area. I enjoyed my time when I was stationed at Ft. Riley (long ago!). Best of luck! :)

First of all, do you have a buyer's agent? If not, you really need to consider finding one. They will be your advocate during the transaction and will help you to negotiate a good price. In answer to your question, it really just depends... how desperate is the builder, is he offering any incentives (like paid closing costs), etc. There's a lot of information you need to find out prior to writing an offer. But I will say this, I have seen builders negotiate more than ever due to the current market conditions. I know that wasn;t a direct answer, but I hope it helped.