Last night we went to a listing appointment. This home has been on the market in Fort Wayne for over a year with two different Realtors®.
Here's the story.
Realtor® #1. She came in with both guns a blazin! She told the sellers what they wanted to hear, and promised to sell their home within two weeks. She priced it at approximately 20% over true market value, and it sat for six months.
Realtor® #2. She came in and was also very confident she could sell this home quickly. She was a little more realistic than the first Realtor®, but still priced it around 12-15% over market value. Guess what? It sat again for another six months.
Realtors® #3 (Us). After Amanda and I both ran a CMA, we agreed on the price point we thought it should be listed to sell. We weren't really looking forward to telling the sellers this.
After a lengthy discussion and a few uncomfortable moments, the sellers agreed to price it where it would sell. They weren't happy with what we told them (and who could blame them??), but we aren't going to go in there and tell them want they want to hear just so we can get the listing. We would rather tell them straight up and either list it to sell, or not list it at all.
Even though the real estate market in Fort Wayne is currently a seller's market, you still need to price your home realistically.
Let's say that you do list it high and are fortunate enough to have a buyer that agrees to pay that price. Good deal, right? Wrong.
When the appraiser looks at the market, they are going to see that the home is over priced, and he or she is going to appraise it for market value, not listed value. Then what?
Just a few tips about pricing your home correctly.
Comments(92)