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Don't Be Dollar Wise and Penny Foolish When Selling Your Home

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with SD Home Source Realty BRE #01363537

san diego home salesEvery home seller dreams of getting a great offer on their home. Let’s imagine that you get lucky and receive a strong offer on your home within the first couple of days on the market. The offer price is strong but not what you really wanted.

Do you grab the offer and put your home into escrow? Or do you counter back for even more money? Home sellers typically choose the latter.

I had the opportunity to witness this occurrence twice this past weekend. I had two new listings on the market. Each home received a strong offer within 48 hours.

There is a dynamic that occurs when sellers receive offers quickly. The thinking is typically ‘If we got that number, then maybe we can get even more?” Time after time, I see sellers turn away offers that they would be thrilled to receive 30 days into a listing.

Home sellers would be wise to remember that there is a cap on the sales price of their home. That cap is called ‘appraisal. Buyers can only go as far as recent sales comparables will allow. Presuming the buyer needs a mortgage, the lender’s appraisal will use those recent sales in your neighborhood to determine your home’s value.

San Diego Home Sellers, you want your home to sell quickly. Generally, the better offers come early in the listing period, and tend to deflate as time goes on. I encourage you to carefully consider the cost of keeping your home on the market (especially when it’s vacant), as well as the risk involved in turning down a sure thing. 

Comments (5)

William Feela
WHISPERING PINES REALTY - North Branch, MN
Realtor, Whispering Pines Realty 651-674-5999 No.

We see so many  pinch the pennies on stuff the will yield dollars.

Aug 03, 2015 11:44 AM
Sam Shueh
(408) 425-1601 - San Jose, CA
mba, cdpe, reopro, pe

There is an agent who has listed her home on the market 7 times. By now no agent wants to have anything to do with her. In our area agents do not list their home.

Aug 03, 2015 11:52 AM
Sam Shueh
(408) 425-1601 - San Jose, CA
mba, cdpe, reopro, pe

Often these people do not want to get a professional opinion as its worthiness.

The market will be higher I will get someone to list higher for 8th time.

Aug 03, 2015 12:05 PM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

We've had sellers time and time again who regretted not taking that offer they got right away.

Aug 03, 2015 12:46 PM
John Meussner
Mortgages in AZ, CA, CO, DE, FL, GA, IN, MD, MN, MT, NC, NJ, NV, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI - Fair Oaks, CA
#MortgageMadeEasy Fair Oaks, CA 484-680-4852

Good advice here Cindy, nothing worse than seeing everyone waste their time, energy, and money to get into escrow only to have an appraisal contingency leave everyone walking away or renegotiating.  Sellers should be wise & pay attention to the data their agent provides re: comps.

Aug 04, 2015 03:24 AM