We used this realtor to find the house in 2004 (our first home) and were happy with our dealings. She is a long time (but not close) friend of my wife's family, so I feel I can trust her. She has been a realtor for 10+ years. When we met with her in February, she advised us to put the house up for sale then start looking for the next house. We have been preparing the house for listing at the end of this month. At the time I agreed with her logic, as she is the expert. However there are a number of factors that come into play which make me question this logic:
1. There are 3 homes for sale on my street at the moment. These are 3 bedroom homes, mine is a 2 bedroom. Two of these houses have been for sale for months yet don't have any perceivable flaws. A friend who lives in the south end of the same subdivision has had no offers on his house after almost 2 months on the market. He at risk of losing the house he intends to purchase as the closing date is fast approaching. Is the localised market saturated or has it stagnated? I've been keeping track of houses on MLS, and few homes in my price range have sold.
2. My tight budget and list of criteria will make it difficult for me to find a house in a short time period. I have found very few homes of interest in the past two months on MLS. On the other hand our home, according to the realtor, should sell relatively quickly due to it being an attractive house for a first time buyer/young family in a popular area of town. It will be priced ~$10k less than the 3 bedroom homes on the same street.
Thanks for your input Accordingly and Seasidelass. I'm planning on meeting with the realtor soon to discuss the situation. I'll start perusing the classifieds for rental houses to get an idea of the current renter's market.
If only I could win the lottery jackpot, then surely this house buying business would be a much easier process!