One of the worst home selling mistakes is pricing your home too high!

One of the worst home selling mistakes is pricing your home too high!

The truth is it really doesn’t matter how much money you think your home is worth, nor how much you need, or what your neighbor says, or what your parents say…etc. Truly the only person whose opinion matters is the buyer who makes an offer.  Pricing homes is part art and part science.  In an attempt to come up with a range value, your agent takes the following into consideration:  comparing similar properties, making adjustments for the differences among them, tracking market trends and taking stock of present inventory.  Listing agents use all of the facts to formulate an educated estimation.  Unfortunately, uninformed sellers often choose the listing agent who suggests the highest list price, which is the worst mistake a seller can make.

The method an educated, experienced listing agent uses is the same way an appraiser evaluates a home.  Let me tell you-no two appraisals are ever exactly the same; however, they are generally close to each other.  In other words, there is no hard and fast price tag to place on your home.  The market will dictate the price. And, the market is ever-changing as we have experienced in the past two years.

Actually, homes sell at a price a buyer is willing to pay and a seller is willing to accept.  Bear in mind, it must appraise for sales price if the buyer is creating a loan to purchase.

There is danger in pricing too high.  Example:  Seller wants to list home at $500,000-Listing agent says:  List price should be $425,000.  Six months later the home has not sold.  So, Seller relists and reduces list price to $475,000.  Seller receives an offer for $450,000; but, rejects it because he wants $475,000.  Three months go by; another offer comes in at $425,000.  By this time the Seller truly wants to sell, so he accepts the offer, which is the original price the Listing agent suggested.

Seller’s payments were $2,500 per month.  Multiply this by 9 months (length of time home is on market) it equals $22,500.  If Seller had taken the first offer he would have been ahead plus would not have had to make those payments.  Sometime, Sellers must do the math.  By the way, typically the first offer is the best offer.  Don’t know why, but it has been proven the norm time and time again.