With so many agents blogging about sellers who will not be realistic on their pricing I thought it timely to bring this post back to life. Though I did very well with my overpriced listing the seller, ultimately, was the one who suffered the most as he delayed his move, and struggled with the rejection of no offer. Luckily for him he ended up selling it at the original recommened list price. Not all Sellers are so lucky.
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Not long ago I had the opportunity to list a waterview home. It was located in one of those small eclectic waterfront communities that we are famous for here in Annapolis MD. Yes this home had a fabulous view as long as you looked out, straight out to the water. Unfortunately it was sitting on a cliff with a road and homes below it and those homes were not the nicest around. One had dozens of cats perched everywhere, another the owner was a collector. A junk collector. So needless to say the view looking down was not the prettiest.
At the time of sharing the market analysis with Mr & Mrs Seller the statistics showed that their home should sell in the $250,000 to $275,000 price range. Not shabby considering. But alas Mr. Seller wanted to price it higher.
It was the same old argument. My home has this and that, we have done this and that. And the view!!! That magnificent view is well....priceless.
After much discussion and going back and forth I reluctantly agreed to list it at a higher price as long as they agreed, if no offers were forthcoming, to lower the price to the market value after 30 days. They agreed so we went forward.
I started my marketing campaign which included advertising open houses, office caravan etc. The property was shown numerous times by other agents. I was even told by a few agents that their buyers were showing some interest but alas no offers. Bottom line, it all boiled down to the neighbors below.
Day 31. Mr & Mrs Seller, we have passed the 30 day agreed upon time frame and have no offers. We need to adjust the sales price to market value as we discussed.
Yes Martha I understand but......
But Mr & Mrs Seller I say, keeping your home overpriced will not help you in the long run nor will it put more money in your pocketbook.
We understand and appreciate your advice and concern. However, we feel strongly that we need to keep it where it is a bit longer. Are you sure I ask again. As I said this really is not in your best interest. Yes, we are sure they say.
So I continued marketing. More Buyers came and went. Through my marketing efforts I showed the home to numerous buyers myself. None, once there, had any interest but I did sell another home to 3 of those Buyers which amounted to just a tad over $1,000,000 in sales.
Month 3.5 of the listing agreement Mr & Mrs Seller lowered the price to market value. We had a contract within weeks and the home sold for.... drum roll please.....$275,000. Gee who would have thought.
When we closed the sale and the Sellers were moving I stopped by to give them a going away gift and to say thank you once again for giving me the opportunity to market and sell their home. We chatted a bit and as Mr. Seller walked me to my car he said... Martha, I appreciate all that you did to help us get this home sold. Looking back I wish I had not been so hard headed and listened to you more though. You said this home would sell for $250,000 to $275,000 and you were right. Next time I sell I will listen more. I wished them well in their move to Arizona and left.
As I glanced in my rear view mirror and drove off I silently said thank you Mr. Seller. You made my day and my year in more ways than you will ever know .
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About the Author- Martha Brown is a Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) whose passion is homes in the Annapolis MD area and surrounding communities. As a 3rd generation Annapolitan she writes about her experiences in and out of the real estate market. Martha has been a local Realtor(R) since 1992 of which all have been associated with Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc., the largest independently owned real estate company in the Mid Atlantic.
Martha would love to hear from you so give her a call any time. Sharing her Annapolis MD area expertise is her passion. You can reach Martha at 410-440-7839 (cell) or 410-260-2800 (ofc)
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55 Comments on Price It Right...Or How To Sell A Million Dollars Worth of Real Estate Off An Over Priced Listing
This is one of those posts, where some of the commenters should remember, anyone could be reading it. Think of your duty to your clients.
Wow. How often does THAT happen? Yes, listings bring buyers so you have to weight the pros and cons, I guess, if you are seriously considering listing it at the "overpriced" price.
Kelsey- Not often. taking overpriced listings can be hazardous to your health and the health of your Seller so.... as you say weigh it out on all sides.
I tell my sellers the truth right off. If they don't agree with me on price I still take the listing (within reason) and try to do exactly what you have done. I also caution them that if their home is priced to high it makes the competition look even better.
You didn't suffer because you took the buyers seriously and worked those leads, so often I hear about listing agents who take over priced listings and then just wait for it to sell, losing buyers.
Martha - BRAVO! Job well done - stuck it out and hit a home run! Thanks for sharing this one.
And that's why some listings you just don't turn down :). It's a good story and at least you got the sellers to finally listen to you...many don't.
Martha, you will be surprised to hear that I have never sold one home from an over-priced listing. Sellers see the sign remain on the market for months and don't trust you know what you are doing. I didn't pick up buyers because they could look at other listings in the area and see it was over-priced so they didn't bother to look. So while you benefited from this over-priced listing, I have not. Therefore, no over-priced listings for me.
Martha,
Excellent story! Thanks for sharing and place keep the great posts coming.
Hi Martha~Great success story! I'm glad to see you turn a challenging seller into a very good situation.
Have an AWESOME day!
Martha, What a great blog to bring back to life! Have you ever taken a listing that you "knew" was overpriced and it sold right away!
Margaret
Martha -- this is a good post to bring back to life! In my neck of the woods, I'm not so sure this would have the same result... buyers don't tend to look at the overpriced listings..
karen- I did for sure.
barbara- yes I stuck it out and made it through. :0)
Brenda- Its a perfect example of why sellers need to price it right. What happened is that they sold their competitions properties. never a good thing for a seller.
Tammie- this was a few years back before the internet has become what it is today AND it was a waterview home which always brings buyers out looking in my neck of the woods. :0)
Jim- Shall do and thanks for stopping by
Michael- yes I did. It's all in the communication. They knew from day one where they should be priced. I do not take all overpriced listings thats for sure but this one worked out just fine.
Margaret- Oh my no but I bet you have. LOL
joan- I doubt I would do so today but back then it was a different story :0)
Martha
I have had a similar experience but on a smaller scale. I think that most of the time we DO know what we are talking about. Every now and then the market can surprise us but I don't think there are too many overpriced listings selling these last few years. And buyers are more savvy than every, although sometimes they go overboard having gotten their data from Zillow. I guess it;'s just human nature that some just have to test out their own instincts adn then find out they are wrong.
Jeff
I had a listing next to an overpriced listing . I called the listing agent who is my friend and asked why it was overpriced and the agent said the seller just wants to try the market and the sale sign on the busy street is good for her ( Agent's)business.
Great story Martha, congratulations on leveraging one listing into 4 nice sales. That yard sign was a great billboard for you, too bad you have to take it down now.
Nice description of the other side of the coin. If the location is good enough to bring buyers in, sometimes that high-priced listing can be your greatest marketing tool.
Martha - This is a timely post at any time, and so true in what it says.