When you have decided to put your house on the market, you understand that multiple things go into selling a house. The location of your home is one of the most important aspects of a buyer’s decision to purchase your home. The condition of your home also makes a big difference. If your carpets are in disrepair and your roof is beginning to show signs of age your condition of your house could be deterring potential buyers from making offers.
The single most important thing that can get potential buyers in the door is your asking price. Most home owners have a number in the back of their mind of what they think their house is worth. When you bought the house it needed some work and you put in $2500 worth of granite counter tops and $3500 worth of stainless appliances and $5000 for oak floors. You have owned the house now for 9 years and you have had three promotions since then. It is time for your family to move to a new area or a bigger house and you start by putting your house up for sale.
Whether you plan to use a licensed real estate agent or sell the home yourself, you still have to use a strategic method for coming up with a price with which you want to advertise your house. Your first instinct is to go online and look at what other properties are on the market for and start making comparisons as to whether your house is better or worse. There is nothing wrong with that method if you want to only know the prices of homes that have not sold yet.
A real estate professional (whose job is to study the market and make pricing decisions everyday) uses a slightly different method.
1. Look at comparable properties that have sold.
2. Look at comparable properties that are still on the market. These are direct competitors of yours and will be homes that buyers judge against yours when viewing property.
3. Compare apples to apples. Same bedrooms, same bathrooms, garage spaces, amenities, geographical location, etc.
4. Price at a competitive price to sell quickly and avoid your listing becoming stale on the market.
MOST IMPORTANTLY – Do not fall into the trap of pricing with room for negotiation. You get the most attention for your house in the first 3 weeks of listing it on the market. This is when the most number of buyers will potentially want to see your home and eventually want to purchase your home. If you price too high and know you will come down, you may be missing out on potential buyers who could be seeing your house. You never get a second chance to make a first impression!
***92% of home buyers begin their home search on the internet. Most buyers do not look outside of their set price ranges.***
I tell all of my sellers to price their home at a number that they are willing to accept and leave less room for negotiation. It is better to get multiple offers than no offers at all.
TRUST YOUR REALTOR!!! They are there to tell you where your house will sell and will not sell you short. It all boils down to motivation. Do you really want to sell your home or are you just trying to feel out the market? This is not the time to overprice your house if you are actually trying to sell.
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