June saw a nice increase in the average sales price over May, a 12.64% increase in fact. There were 37 homes in Plymouth, Michigan that were bought in the month of June.
Average Sales Price to List Price Ratio: 92.60%
In June, homes in the city of Plymouth, Michigan sold for about 7% less than what they were offered as for sale. This ratio is based on the original list price of the home and final sales price. Please note that this ratio does not take into account any concessions or money back from the seller to the purchaser.
Average Number of Days on the Market: 83
Nearly three months is what it took, on average, for homes to sell in June. This means that if your home was of average price and quality, it would have sold for an average of 93% of list price within eighty three days.
Average Sales Price per Square Foot: $113
Good news for sellers: the sales price per square foot of a home sold in Plymouth Michigan has gone up. For the second month in a row, the market has pushed the average sales price per square foot higher. Considering there were more homes sold in June than in May or April, this shows the market is seeing greater value in homes hitting the Plymouth Michigan real estate market.
A little while ago, I wrote a post titled "When Is A Home Really For Sale?" Continuing the train of thought in that prior post, I figure a follow up post might be in order to specifically talk about how to properly price a home for sale.
Many homeowners faced with selling right nowt have an idea that the market is challenging...but few sellers know JUST HOW difficult selling can be in this market.
Pricing Your Plymouth Michigan Home for Sale
The first and, arguably, the biggest factor in the successful sale of your home is determining the appropriate list price. MSN's Money Central recently published a great article on just this topic. I highly recommend taking the time to read the whole article. Here are a few of the ten points I'd like to highlight:
Tip No. 1: Don't get penalized for starting too high. Identify your home's true value, and set the price slightly under that. At worst, you'll lose about $10,000, but you might make a quick sale. If you're further under market than that, buyers are likely to bid the price back up...
Tip No. 2: Test your price against reality. Try this: Pretend you're the buyer.Search online in your price range in neighborhoods with similar quality schools about the same distance from downtown or the nearest major work center. If your place doesn't pop out as an obvious value next to other properties people can buy for the same money, your price is too high.
Tip No. 5: Embrace the zeros. Here's another school of thought: If you want to draw the most attention to your Internet listing, you should select a big, round number, like $400,000, says DellaLoggia. This doubles your home's exposure, putting it in searches for properties between $300,000 to $400,000 and also in searches for $400,000 to $500,000. The next-best option is a price ending in a $50,000 increment, such as $250,000. And then $25,000.
Tip No. 6: Think in increments of $25,000. Most listing sites force buyers todefine their searches in increments of at least $25,000. In price brackets above $500,000, some sites offer searches only in $50,000 increments. If your home would be accurately priced at $419,000, you might as well offer it at $400,000 or $425,000 -- the same shoppers will see it.
Tip No. 7: Know your price bracket. Buyers shop by price ranges (also called brackets). These aren't hard-and-fast categories; they're psychological break points that help buyers -- and their agents -- organize searches. It's important to select your price bracket thoughtfully. "We've analyzed this and found that moving from one price 'brand' to another -- say, the difference between $324,500 and $325,500 -- can reduce traffic to the listing by as much as 7.1%, which is significant," says Kelman, of Redfin.
Sellers Price Logically and Buyer's Purchase on Emotion... Or is it The Other Way Around?
None of us like to feel as though we got a bad deal, left money on the table or got taken advantage of by the other party. This applies, almost doubly so, in making the decision to sell your home. When it is time to put your home on the active market, you must make a decision on what is most important to you: time or money. If you need to sell within a certain amount of time, you need to utilize a very sharp pencil on figuring your list price. If optimizing your financial net is your biggest issue, you need to ensure maximum exposure of the amenities your home offers. At the end of the discussion about what's most important in selling your home, it all comes back to the list price. The right listing price for your home will garner the maximum number of potential buyer's eyeballs. This applies to the seller needing to move within a timeframe, and the seller with an eye on maximizing every dollar out of their home.
The buyers in today's market are looking for real estate deals. This means they are looking for a great price on a great quality home. If your home is simply not up to muster, either in price or quality, there are more than enough other homes to consider. For you, the seller, this means that you need to approach the real estate market like a buyer. You need to crawl into their collective "head" and see your home through their eyes.
Seeing the market through the buyer's eyes means turning yourself into a buyer for your home. If you were to enter the market to purchase a home just like yours, for what would you be looking? Every buyer I am currently working with is looking for the same basic things: quality home at a great price. Yeah, price points and needs are different, to be sure, but those two ingredients (quality and price) ALWAYS remain the same.
As the five points above indicate, there are many facets to consider when setting your list price. The overriding, most important thing for home sellers to keep in mind is the buyer's viewpoint of your home. It's all well and good to price your home "on the $25's" to capture multiple price brackets (Tip No. 6), but if you've overpriced your 1,600 square foot home, the similarly priced, same quality 2,000 square foot home is going to sell before yours because it has more to offer than your home.
In a Declining Market...
As much as we don't like to hear it, for the most part, the housing market is still declining. There are some micro-markets where prices appear to have stabilized, but chances are good that house values are below what most sellers expect.
We'd like to try [house's market value + 25%] because we don't want to give the home away. But we can reduce the price later, right?
This is a common statement when sellers are trying to come to grips with the lost value in their home. Remember that nearly every home search site on the net shows the pricing history for your home. For that matter, every agent, and every buyer working with an agent, can see the early pricing strategy for your home.
From the MSN article:
An error on the high side, however, can cost you more than just time. Once you drop your price, buyers smell blood. "They say, 'He's knocked $30k off the price; he'll do it again.' It's death by a thousand cuts," Kelman says.
Multiple Offers Anyone?
The converse, pricing below the market, could have an awesome benefit in the sale of your home. Aside from being one of the next homes to sell, you could gather multiple offers on your home if your offer (list price and quality) is irresistible to home purchasers. In markets in and around Plymouth, Michigan, buyers are not seeing an overwhelming abundance of quality homes from which to choose. This means that when a below-market value home with quality hits the market, it doesn't last long. In fact, many buyers who have been looking for a while will try to out bid each other for homes with this price and quality combination.
What's The Correct Price For My Home?
In addition to advising you on the pricing for your home, we can also show you how our marketing effort exposes your home to the "four corners" of the internet. Click on the Google Voice button to the right to be connected immediately or drop your contact information on this form and a Professional One Real Estate agent will be in touch with you.
Here's an article covering a few items you will need to remember in purchasing a home offered as a short sale. The important item to highlight, repeat, underline and emphasize is that short sales take time... more time than would seem realistic. And that goes for both the buyer and the seller of a short sale property!
May 2010 is officially over and we are rushing head long into June! Important item to note in the housing market: April 30th has passed us by. April 30th was the deadline for buyers to get under contract to be eligible for the Uncle Sam housing purchase tax credit (up to $8,000 for first time homebuyers and up to $6,500 for everyone else).
To view the Plymouth Michigan housing stats, be sure to click "Fullscreen" below to see everything.
A modest increase over April's average sales price of $203,913, May saw 31 homes change ownership in the City of Plymouth, Michigan.
Average Sales Price to List Price Ratio: 94.09%
For the homes that sold in Plymouth Michigan, they sold for about 6% less than what they were originally listed for. This ratio shows the difference between the initial offering price of a home and the final contract price of a home. Please note that this ratio does not take into account any seller concessions, so the adjusted ratio could be greater.
Average Number of Days on Market: 73
If your home in Plymouth, Michigan was priced within 6% of its ultimate sales price and it sold in May, your home was likely on the market for just over two months. This is good news for sellers in our market that are simply looking to sell their home, not just list their home for sale. With January 2010 showing a peak of just over 6 months as the average number of days on market, a precipitous drop to just over 2 months shows that buyer interest is alive for homes in Plymouth, Michigan.
Average Sales Price per Square Foot: $109
My rule of thumb still applies! Todd's rule of thumb is: Great quality, priced around $100 per square foot and the home will sell quickly. Want more information on the Plymouth, Michigan real estate market? Connect with me via the Google Talk button along the right-hand side of this page or connect via any social network along the left side of this page.
Are you going to be buying or selling a Plymouth Michigan home in the not too distant future? If the answer is any form of "yes," then you need to be aware of some of the documents you will be signing to purchase or sell your next home.
This video reviews the Disclosure Regarding Real Estate Agency Relationships that Michigan law requires real estate licensees to discuss with real estate consumers. It is simply a disclosure that shows the different "flavors" of agency relationship.
Below the video is the language you will see on the disclosure for each variety of real estate agency.
[click the description to make them large enough to read...]
It's time for the monthly Plymouth Michigan real estate statistics! Presented here are the numbers for homes closed in the month of April 2010. Don't forget to hit the "full screen" button to view this presentation at a size you can actually READ the numbers.
Plymouth Michigan Homes | Average Sales Price: $203,913
Down from March's Average Sales Price of $210,653, April saw 26 homes successfully sell. This is a modest increase of 1 sale from April 2009 and is down 14 sales from March of 2010.
Plymouth Michigan Homes | Average Sales Price to List Price Ratio: 92.05%
For the homes that sold in Plymouth Michigan, they sold for about 8% less than what they were originally listed for. This ratio shows the difference between the initial offering price of a home and the final contract price of a home. Please note that this ratio does not take into account any seller concessions, so the adjusted ratio could be greater.
Plymouth Michigan Homes | Average Days on Market: 78
Good news for Plymouth Michigan home sellers, the average days on market appears to be dropping! From 183 days in January to 78 days in April, every month in between has shown a decline in time on market. This is likely due to two different factors:
More buyers active
Pricing more in line with market expectations
With more buyers on the market, it follows, that homes of quality and price won't last very long. When sellers price more closely in line with what the market will bear, again, those homes simply don't last long on the market.
Plymouth Michigan Homes | Average Sales Price per Square Foot: $104
Many folks like to look at the price per square foot, when it comes to housing. A decent rule of thumb, just off this one metric of housing stats, is that if a home is priced around $100 a square foot, and is sporting great quality, that home will simply not last the week on market. Of course, there are exceptions on both sides of this statement, that's why it's called a rule of thumb. Here's my take on these stats and the benefits to buyers and sellers in the Plymouth Michigan housing market:
You're selling your home. It's been on the market for a little while, an offer has been tendered and you have come to an agreement on price and terms with the purchasers.
Once you've gotten to this stage of the deal, you're done, right?
Not so fast there, Smokey!
There are still a few potential trouble spots along the way. The thing to remember about ANY real estate transaction is that there WILL BE some bumps along the way. It may be as minor as a sump pump dying on you or as major as the lender for the buyer folding up shop. What you need to keep in mind is that your goal is to close on the sale. You want to hand the keys over to the buyers.
That being said, here are some critical points for you to keep in mind as you navigate these frequently turbulent waters:
Six Tips Plymouth Home Sellers Should Remember
Funding: It may seem like a no-brainer, but funding is almost always an issue these days. No, really. Even though a buyer has come through with a purchase agreement and a seemingly valid pre-approval, loan products disappearing, appraisals coming back too low and funding issues popping up prior to closing do happen with some frequency. If this happens, take a deep breath, keep your cool and be as patient as you can. If the buyer is committed to buying your home, give them time and space to work through whatever issues may arise relating to financing. Remember, even in the bast case scenario, it will take you at least another another 30 days until a new offer gets to the same point in the process. Now more than ever, a "bird in the hand" is worth saving, so be patient!
Keep track of Important Dates: The purchase agreement you signed for your Plymouth area home contains some important dates to remember. Examples: the deadline for completion of the buyer's home inspection, the deadline for review of homeowner's association documents, the deadline for the providing of a title commitment, the deadline for the approval of the buyer's financing, etc. All of these dates need to be addressed appropriately if the transaction is to continue moving forward on track. If you are being represented by a real professional, they should be keeping you apprised of these key dates, but make it a habit to ask questions if you feel your agent may not be on top of these details.
Communicate: Continuing the prior point, make sure you and your real estate agent are communicating frequently and on the same page. If you are expecting a response to a question or deadline, make sure you know how to get a hold of your agent and that your agent knows how to get a hold of you. There are no dumb questions!
Utilities: At the appropriate time (usually the day of or the day before your closing) don't forget to TRANSFER the utilities OUT of your name. I did not say to turn them off! Call the utilities and tell them (A) to remove your name from the account, and (B) that a new owner will be calling in to take over billing responsibility. That way the purchaser can put the utilities in their name and not incur a reconnect fee.
Be Patient: Sounds elemental, but in this real estate market, a little patience with the process and the people involved will go a long way. Remember, if your goal is to sell your home, and you have a buyer that wants to purchase the property, expect the occasional problem, roll with the punches and allow the appropriate people to wrap up any lending, title or communications issues that may arise.
Listen: You hired a professional real estate agent for a reason. Listen to their advice. They've been through the selling process a few times and therefore have developed specific expertise and a feel for how deals come together. Trust their instincts! After all, you hired them for their expertise, now, rely on it!
The list is nowhere near all-conclusive or complete. Rather, it is a series of guidelines that should be kept in mind once you have hit the nirvana that is a seller with a purchase agreement.
Looking for that nirvana? Contact us for an interview. We would be happy to talk about our marketing program and service guarantee...both of which are unique to the Plymouth, Michigan housing market.
... small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment and Design (hence, "TED"). Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with the annual TED Conference in Long Beach, California, and the TEDGlobal conference in Oxford UK, TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Program, the new TEDx community program, this year's TEDIndia Conference and the annual TED Prize.
TEDxUofM is an independently organized TED event that took place Saturday, April 10th, 2010. The University of Michigan hosted and sponsored this event at their new Biomedical Research Building. Having missed out on last year's TEDxDetroit event, I was extremely happy to be notified of my invite to attend TEDxUofM.
Put together in three months (wow!), the organizers of TEDxUofM put together an impressive line up of speakers, presenters and performers. From a paper engineer (Matt Shlian), a music label founder (Sam Valenti IV), to a composer (Alex Wand) and college football & cancer kicker (Phil Brabbs), the TED conference had a range of personalities and subjects to learn from and about.
To be frank, I had no idea what to expect from this event. One of the phrases that caught my attention to describe this event was a "brain massage" and that it would be like "one last lecture" from your favorite college profs.
"Do you realize the impact you can have if you are intentional?"
That seemed to be a repeated theme in all the presentations and performances.
Two Presentations & a Conversation
I was struck, hard, by two presentations specifically. Udae Sandhu delivered an eloquent, seemingly off-the-cuff talk on working your skill set directly into your passions. Paraphrasing: An artist who wants to be a businessman needs to use his "artist skill set" to build his art business. Not the opposite approach - intuitive to many of us - of using our "business skill set" to build an art business.
Apply your unique skills to your passion to create a life of happiness.
Or, as we like to say in the Professional One office, with full attribution to Gary Vaynerchuck:
Crush it!
The second presentation that left a deep impression on me was the video recording of Phil Brabbs.
The day of the TEDxUofM event, Phil was recovering from a stem cell transplant relating to a disease he is currently fighting: multiple myeloma.
His talk, backed with the enormity of the challenge that he is facing, really brought home how thankful we need to be for everything.
And how important ATTITUDE and PERSPECTIVE are in virtually every aspect of our lives.
You see, Phil was that kicker in the 2002 University of Washington/University of Michigan game who missed two field goals early on in the game. With seconds to go and Michigan down by two, Phil was called on to knock a field goal through the uprights...and he did.
When asked by a reporter about what was going through his head leading up to the last kick, he said that it wouldn't have been possible if he made the other two field goals.
Imagine that.
A person is placed in a high-pressure, "perform or fail situation," and his response is that without two prior failures, he wouldn't have had the opportunity to be the game-winning hero!
THAT is a refreshing, uplifting and powerful perspective - and life lesson.
As already noted, Phil is currently battling multiple myeloma, something that someone his age rarely sees or survives. From the inspiration and perspective borne of that "third kick," Phil is tackling this disease head on to dominate it. And I have no doubt that he will.
The conversation that intrigued me to no end, however, happened BEFORE the conference even started. Upon registering for the conference, we were all provided a continental breakfast and the opportunity to mill about before it all kicked off. I ended up chatting with a graduating senior from New York, a freshman from Boston and two folks from down the road in Canton, Michigan.
Our conversation ranged from a thesis on the importance of the world's smallest countries to the the local Apple store to real estate (go figure). What shocked me, and what was a welcome surprise, was the level of intellectual curiosity these people had about all the topics we were discussing!
All in all, the conversation and the conference reminded me how much I enjoyed the mental stimulation of college.
Brain massage indeed.
Results.
I've come back from the conference with two prevailing thoughts:
Focus on branding with an even greater level of discipline and intensity, and
Break things down to their building blocks, then rearrange; that is the key to innovation.
What events or things do you do to recharge, refresh and innovate in your business and and in your life?
Located at 844 Penniman in Plymouth, Michigan, the Rock Bar & Grill is a great place to grab lunch during the day or meet up with friends after work. A unique bar and separate dining area set this establishment apart from others in the area. Quickly gaining a reputation for excellent burgers and chicken tenders, the Rock prepares all of its menu items on site. Soups are not just reheated, they are made in the grill's kitchen.
Looking for a unique, downtown Plymouth experience? Want to celebrate a new contract with your coworkers or simply gather with friends for a beer? Stop by the Rock Bar & Grill and see what's new in downtown Plymouth, Michigan.
The wide ranging discussion on how to raise the bar (#RTB) in real estate continues. Many are asking questions, many are making suggestions... some are even taking action. Today, consider that a stake has been driven into the ground. The gauntlet thrown down, if you will.
Step Up
Here at Professional One, we have recently introduced our list of standards we believe will not only create a professional image in the mind of the consumer, but confirm that perception with reality. The full post explaining the why and how of this list can be found on the Professional One site.
In the meantime, here are our eight standards to become a Professional One agent:
Possess a college diploma (four-year degree), OR a broker's license OR five years of documented full-time experience as a real estate professional.
Pass the Future Achievement International "Merit Profile" character assessment (this is an assessment which measures 10 character competencies and four behavioral traits and provides a scoring for an individual's attitudes, beliefs and commitments).
Have a clean record of professional service (no ethics charges, no unfavorable litigation, etc.).
Have at least three letters of recommendation from other Realtors.
Have at least three letters of recommendation from past clients.
Pass an interview with three existing Professional One Realtors.
Agree to use our proprietary listing syndication method on every listing (this requires lots of effort, but the results are SO worth it).
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
None of us like to feel as though we got a bad deal, left money on the table or got taken advantage of by the other party. This applies, almost doubly so, in making the decision to sell your home. When it is time to put your home on the active market, you must make a decision on what is most important to you: time or money. If you need to sell within a certain amount of time, you need to utilize a very sharp pencil on figuring your list price. If optimizing your financial net is your biggest issue, you need to ensure maximum exposure of the amenities your home offers. At the end of the discussion about what's most important in selling your home, it all comes back to the list price. The right listing price for your home will garner the maximum number of potential buyer's eyeballs. This applies to the seller needing to move within a timeframe, and the seller with an eye on maximizing every dollar out of their home.
You're selling your home. It's been on the market for a little while, an offer has been tendered and you have come to an agreement on price and terms with the purchasers.
;)
;)
