Real Estate Matters: Tips For Buying & Selling

 

Steve Mathis is an author, real estate appraiser, loan officer and sales manager at Hilton & Hyland Real Estate. For more than 30 years he has helped people buy and sell their homes with confidence and success.

If your home hasn’t sold, it’s probably about the price! Economic conditions today have created an ideal climate for current home buyers.  Prices have declined, but market activity has increased!  These historically low home mortgage interest rates combined with a decline in property values have created the “perfect storm” for home seekers; a price-driven market.  

The Importance of Pricing For Sellers

There are ONLY sellers who need to sell and buyers who want a “deal”. A seller can- not under-price a listing, because multiple buyers bid up the price!  But sellers should  engage in negotiation or they risk loosing a potential buyer!  How important is pricing? Very!  Here’s why.  A listing sells because it is better than its competition not because it’s yours!  Sellers can’t afford to be discouraged because of their emotions over their home. When sellers speak of value they mean the amount invested and what they can afford to take.  Their present total investment has no effect on what the buyer is being offered elsewhere.  Serious sellers must attract attention to their property.  Their asking price should be high enough to encourage maximum offers, but not so high as to discourage otherwise qualified buyers!   

Sale Sabotage Condition & Price

Buyers look at price, condition and other properties.  Condition and price are both important criteria, but price determines the sale.  Today, there are fewer buyers for certain price ranges in a market of extra- ordinary choice and unprecedented buying power.  Prospective buyers interested in a particular home is related to how close to current market value that home is priced.   Research suggest that a home priced 10-15% higher than market value, will decrease the number of prospective buyers interested in the property by as much as 30%!   Any home unsold after 90 days in this market is probably  overpriced.  Over-pricing makes a home “stale” on the market.  Buyers and realtors wonder what’s ‘wrong with it’ and most agents won’t go back to a home they’ve already previewed if it hasn’t sold!  Well-priced homes lead to sales in any market.

 Shopping  •  Comparing  • Buying

Realtors and sellers are not “appraisers”, but “buyers” are, and make their evaluations by comparing properties with other properties offering similar locations, features and benefits. Most buyers’ perceptions are shaped by information they obtain from the Internet, news and media reports on the housing market.  The market speaks to us.  We must pay attention!  A seller’s decision regarding price can be influenced by fictitious and hearsay report of what a neighbor received for the sale of their home.  Those sellers realize too late that they are chasing the market with price reductions. Time passes, and their price erodes.  When they finally sell, they realize a substantially lesser amount for their home because of  depreciation.  We have a saying in our business, “If you want your house listed for sale, then over-price it.  If you want it sold, then price it right!”

By Steve Mathis