Price Point Importance

          1. During a listing appointment, I always ask the seller how much they think they will get for the house.  Recently an older woman gave me a figure $100,000 over what I had in mind. "That is what I need from the house-this is my nest egg," she repeated over and over. It was a condo (in a saturated Madison condo market, of course) and should be priced in the $150 to $160,000 range. She came up with $250.  Since this was a very strong referral, she was not going to be interviewing other agents.  I'd almost wish she were so that she would hear this from others too!  What a weird wish that is! She is a woman in her 80's  not keeping up with the current economic conditions or even the news-just playing cards and reading books and going to physical therapy.  The time-frame on this listing is suspended for a while but I have easily enlisted her sphere of influence and family members to help me help her understand the market. They all want to see her move to a retirement home. I think this almost total unawareness of market conditions is, not always, but more prevalent with(as Tom Brokaw says) the Greatest Generation.

            2. I recently advised a younger Baby Boomer that she should wait a year or two to put her house on the market because she would not be able to get the price she wanted, and she has only been in the house for 4 years.  Her primary thoughts also went in the direction of the money she needed out of it as well.  But as I reiterated how the market was doing, gave her a market analysis and months of inventory data, it jolted her quickly back into reality before she even finished looking at my paperwork. "I know. I know you are telling it like it is."

         3. A real estate executive with his personal luxury listing confessed to a group of Realtors recently, "Yes, I who certainly know better, I have had my house sitting there and sitting there with too high a price tag and so I just said to my wife, "Honey this house is bogging us down, it is time we got realistic with the price!"  

Pricing is more important than ever.  I sold a less than perfect house last year in the depths of the economic crisis. It received 3 above listing price offers in the first week and one was accepted within 10 days. 

If you are thinking of selling your home, I can help you with pricing.  Give me a call. Let's chat about your dreams.