How do you decide what is the market price?

Many buyers today want deals, deals and more deals. Which if you believe everything you read is understandable, however, many homes even today receive multiple offers. So how do you decide what is the market price?

A buyer has no interest in what you paid for the home Mr. Seller, how much you owe, or what you think your home is worth. All of this is irrelevant. What does matter is what else is on the market that he can actually see and compare with this home he is interested in? What homes have sold recently, in the last three months but not much more than that, the more recent the better? If they have seen those so much the better, but sometimes if the listing agent did a good job, the photos and virtual tour will give a good impression of what the home is like. Buyers today all look at sites like Zillow and Trulia that give recent sales and other market data, allowing them to decide what a fair price in their minds for a property is, plus see a "zestimate" for the property that interests them. As time has passed, while agents think that only they can work out market price Zillow has become more accurate. Is it infallible, no, as they do not know when the bathrooms and kitchen were last updated, but it does give a range. It always amazes me, whilst buyers want updated bathrooms and kitchens they don't care if the recent solds had them or not. Your buyers wants the lowest price he can get and he will quantify it any way he can. Price per sq foot, ratios involving the tax assessment etc. to work out what is a market price.

In a development of townhomes it can be fairly easy to price a home, if homes are different then it becomes more difficult, especially if some have been updated and some have not. But using a variety of methods and seeing where they all end up is a good system to get a ballpark range for a home that will actually appraise as well. For what good is it if you obtain a buyer but they cannot get financing because a home will not appraise.

So when you come to list your home, understand it really does not matter what you think the home is worth, it is only worth what a ready willing and able buyer is willing to offer and for which they can obtain financing. Check out our recent blog on price per sq foot for many Main Line Townships for single family homes.