Special offer

Seriously, What Would You Do?

By
Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams Realty-California Coast Property Group

I'm in a position to deal with an unrealistic seller and their broker. There's a way over-priced listing that my buyer is interested in, but understands that the seller is living in La La Land at over $250,000 market value.

There are several ways to deal with this like head on into calling the listing broker and seeing why they would even come close to accepting such a fallacy and asking if their sellers are just grooving on having strangers come into their home to look. I know that sounds harsh, but so is the list price on a beautifully decorated condo at the beach.

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Heck, I could see adding MAYBE $25k above value for the view of the ocean that is observed only from the patio (no window views, you must go outside). And perhaps another $50k for interior improvements as long as the installation was within the last year. Think granite counters, distressed hardwood floors, upgrades galore.

So, tell me, how would you approach this in a market that continues to slide just a tad more each day?

Eleanor Thorne
Equity Resources - Cary, NC
Advantage Lending 919-649-5058

We've seen offers that required the SELLER to pay for the first appraisal.  If the property does not appraise, the buyer is not out the money.  In both cases I've seen with this (in the last month) the seller came down to the appraised value - and everyone was happy.  Good Luck!

Sep 19, 2010 05:27 AM
Charlie Ragonesi
AllMountainRealty.com - Big Canoe, GA
Homes - Big Canoe, Jasper, North Georgia Pros

I had a deal where the seller was priced at 840,000 for a beautiful historic home. Now these things are tough to price. But I found comps in the area and around and we went in at 600k all cash. In addition I sent the selling agent, who was very nice, all the comps as justification for my offer. The seller never even countered. The deal died. Now we would have come up some and had they been reasonable it would have happened. The point here is the buyer was happy with what I did and remained a client.

In your case if you are going for a mortgage you could also note that given the comps an appraisal at the higher price would be unlikely and the deal could fall through after time . So all you can do is be reasonable and justify your case with examples and properties. If the other side is being silly there really isn't much you can do EXCEPT show your buyer how you are working for them with the numbers.

If the seller rejects you without even a counter then your buyers will blame the seller and NOT you.

Sep 19, 2010 05:29 AM
Cynthia Larsen
Cotati, CA
Independent Broker In Sonoma County, CA

Eleanor has a great idea, it would be nice if the seller will pay for an appraisal. Otherwise, write an offer for market value and include the comps you used to arrive at that value. Good luck with this one!

Sep 19, 2010 05:29 AM
Tish Lloyd
BlueCoast Realty Corporation - Wilmington, NC
Broker - Wilmington NC and Surrounding Beaches

I think Eleanor's suggestion is an excellent idea.  Certainly, as Cynthia recommends, you should pull all the comps you can find in order to educate your Buyer and hopefully the Seller.  Best of luck and please keep us posted.

Sep 19, 2010 11:22 AM
Brenda Mullen
RE/MAX Associates - San Antonio, TX
Your San Antonio TX Real Estate Agent!!

If it is price $250K over market, something is obviously wrong.  Call the listing agent and ask if that is the correct price.  If it is, then pull the comps and make an offer based on those and see what happens.  Lots of luck!

Sep 22, 2010 06:01 AM
Sheila Rasak
Keller Williams Realty-California Coast Property Group - Camarillo, CA

I like this idea of asking the seller to appraise the property! I guess the best way to go about it is to show my client (the buyer) has the ability to pay so that the seller realizes that he's qualified his end of the transaction and he merely wants the seller to qualify their position!

Sep 24, 2010 01:15 AM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

who pays for the appraisal is always a matter than can be negoitiated, but when you ask the seller to pay for it, make sure they don't also get to order it (just sayin')

Oct 01, 2010 08:21 AM
Sheila Rasak
Keller Williams Realty-California Coast Property Group - Camarillo, CA

True that, Tammy! Bottom line here, what agent in their right mind takes such an overpriced listing? It completely turns the transaction into a battlefield of me having to convince my buyer (who saw it on an open house ad) that it's pretty much a lost cause due to the fact that the seller has an overinflated idea of value and their agent wasn't able to convince them otherwise.

How about "Just Say No" to overpriced listings?

Oct 01, 2010 09:57 AM