In this economic climate, every buyer wants a great deal. Whether it´s that pair of shoes in the shop window, the new car you´ve seen in the showroom, or the dream Spanish property.
But we also know that prices are on their way down, so although we still want to buy those shoes, that car or that Spanish property, we are prepared to wait until the prices come down to a more acceptable level. But just what do we consider acceptable?
It´s all about judging the moment. As an example, I have had my eye on a very expensive coat in a boutique in Marbella for a few months now, and watched with interest as its price came down by 10%, 20% and then last week by 30% - still very expensive, but enough to make me go and try it on. Of course, it felt fantastic and looked the business, but although I could afford to buy it at the newly reduced price, something told me to hold off.
On Saturday, I decided I would go to the shop, and that I would cheekily ask for a further 10% discount to see if the shopkeeper would be prepared to sell it. When I got to the store, I noticed a banner saying – 50% OFF! When I stepped inside, I found out that my coat had gone! It had been sold to someone 2 hours earlier with a whopping 50% discount.
I was gutted.
I felt frustrated, foolish and dejected. But it made me think about how this scenario is so typical of millions of similar transactions around the world. We have entered one giant global market stall, where everything is for sale, but we can never quite be sure where the bottom of the market is. And of course, once the bottom is reached, to reap any benefit at all, we need to be first in the queue.
Yes, I would have bought the coat with a 40% discount – I wanted it that badly. I would have taken the ´hit´ of that extra 10% and still been content. But my timing was awry.
Next time you are out shopping for a Spanish property bargain, just bear some of these things in mind – it may mean that you end up with what you wanted for a price that is fair to both parties.
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