One of the most common questions I get is how to price a property in this market. Over the past year we’ve found that the closer the house is priced to where it will sell, the faster it sells and the higher the price. While this sounds obvious, many people believe that pricing higher will give them room to negotiate and hold a higher price. Sales in the Gables over the past 6 months from $800,000-$1,000,000 revealed a total of 18 sales (not including foreclosures & short sales). 7 sold in less than 60 days averaging 4.71% off the asking price, 3 sold between 60-120 days and they averaged 12.33% off original asking price, and 8 took over 120 days to sell averaging 23% off original list price. It becomes clear that pricing is critical to the length of time a property takes to sell.
While often hard to know what the correct sales price will be, it is critical to be objective in pricing, look at the comps and listen to other people’s perspective of the house. Often the owner or agent is emotionally attached to a home and is not as open minded as they should be. As the inventory depletes and the buyers become more active, it is clear early on as to how the market is receiving a home. Don’t mistake the fact that the market is very active at this time and buyers are willing to pay what they deem a fair price, but not what they believe is overpriced.
