According to an MLS search I ran this morning, there are only 1587 active listings of single family homes and condos in the Fresno and Clovis area, and of these 476 are short sales, or roughly 30%.
This means there are really only about 1111 active listings that can be bought today. I don't count the short sales as truly available, because they require 3rd party approval before they can be sold, and it's typically a 4-8 month process.
From my perspective, I see most of the action in the lower price ranges, especially the under $100,000. properties that are being snatched up by investors and first time buyers. Any properties that are really clean or need little work are getting multiple offers. The buyers I've been working with are asked to submit their highest and best offers and many times are exceeding the asking price in order to win the bid.
The best advice I can give, is to have a strong pre-approval letter describing your financing and credit scores before you go house hunting. This is essential homework to do, in order to get a seller to consider your offer, especially in a multi offer situation. Most bank owned listing agents won't submit your offer to a seller without one.
