The Good, the Bad, the Ugly
Door County Real Estate
Market Listings
How do you price your Door County property to sell? One of my team members, and I found ourselves in an unfortunate position last week, and it's something we all see in the real estate market. We all have the occasional "ugly" home in our inventory--something that is very dated or simply neglected---and if it is priced correctly, it does sell (and may sell very quickly at the right price).
Recently I received a call from an elderly gentleman who had decided, with his wife, that it has become time to sell the family's waterfront cottage. I prepared my listing package as per usual, done some due diligence via the tax records, and a few days later we set off to meet the family.
It always makes me sad when a family makes the determination to sell a home that has been in a family for generations because no one is using the property enough, but what makes me more angry is when people have been relying on public records--i.e., their tax bills---as to what the value of their home is worth. As always, we need to explain that we have assessed value, appraised value, and current market value--and that current Door County real estate market value is no different than the stock market--it goes up and down.
This property had been in the Seller's family for over 80 years (it had been his mother's property) and knowing the area, I had prepared myself for a few things. I knew it would likely have some mud (wetlands are prevalent in the area), but based on taxed value, I was COMPLETELY unprepared for what I found after I drove down the muddy driveway, which was bare ground (and a lot of puddles). I could see I was in a wetland area, which equals a LOT of mosquitoes this year.
When I finally drove down the long, wooded, muddy driveway to the home and shore--I almost didn't need to go in. It was plainly obvious that either the assessor had never actually been on this property or that he/she felt that they could take advantage of an elderly couple. The exterior had never been treated/painted. It was built in the 1980s, and the level of finish wasn't bad, but it was tiny. It showed no exterior upkeep, nor any landscaping.
The owner had hired recently hired someone (actually, a reputable local tree service) to clear up the view, and that forester had obviously taken advantage of this elderly couple, also. Rather than wood chips left on the ground to be able to walk down to the shore (and with a shore home, you have bare feet walking to the shore, there was a mess: sharp sticks as large as 12 inches long had been left in piles around the home all the way down to the water--and no limbing had been done at all. The detached garage across the unfinished area that was serving as porch was also completely unfinished (although I told the potential Seller I appreciated its large size--one could fit a boat inside).
Inside, the upstairs been divided into two rooms with no doors and one closet, and the ceiling showed evidence of leaking. Downstairs, a sliding door showed evidence of water damage all over the floor and ceiling (they explained it had been recently replaced). The house was essentially one bedroom and one bath.
This was a no-brainer. I had a price in my mind immediately, based on the past year of waterfront sales in Door County--and it was over $150,000 less than what the family had been paying on its tax bill. How did I break the news to this lovely couple of what this home--which was a nest egg to them--would actually sell at?
I can't afford to mislead people OR to overprice my listings. I did give this family in my story the telephone number of the municipality that they were being taxed by in order to state that they had been told by a Broker that the property was worth nowhere NEAR the nearly $450,000 amount that they had been paying taxes on.
I hope they follow my advice. The house isn't listed yet, because I don't "buy" my listings. I want my properties to sell. The area/location was good. The shore front and house were pretty bad (condition/neglect). The taxes were downright ugly.
Hire a Door County real estate expert. Our market analysis services (Comparative Market Analysis, or "CMA"s, are complimentary.
If you'd like more information on pricing your home to sell, please contact me today. We work with our Sellers to provide accurate information on the current market--not the market that existed pre-recession.
Pricing your home to sell....contact me today.
Comments(0)