I specialize in helping people like you who find themselves in a difficult situation with their house. Each day, thousands of honest Americans are put into an impossible spot by creditors who just do not seem to understand the concept of a second chance or simply just do not care. I myself have been in the same situation as you and at the time I couldn’t find anyone to help me. Don’t let this happen to you. Let me help you through this difficult process. If you wait too long, it could cost you thousands of dollars as well as your house. Don’t let this happen, give me a call and I can help. Working with homeowners in tough situation is what I do every day and I want to help.

EXIT ON TIME REALTY
7045 Campus Drive 201
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
Fax: 719-266-2186
Office Number: 719-321-3948

Email: Rondi @ Rondilambeth.com

COLORADO REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL

Hello, my name is Rondi an EXIT Realty professional, as a real estate professional I believe in staying on the cutting edge of technology, So, I have created customized real estate marketing videos that helps introduce myself and explain some of the ways that I may be able to help you in your real estate needs. Please feel free to preview any of them at your leisure.

In today’s complex real estate market it is important to understand the significance of marketing. As a real estate professional, I have extensive tools available to me enhance the sale of a house, but having the tools means nothing unless you know how to use them. When a house is placed on the market, is priced right and saleable and it still does not sell, it was not marketed properly. I understand the first place to market your house, is to other real estate professionals. Once they are aware of all the amenities and are sold on your house, they will be able to sell it to their qualified buyers. Do not just put a sign out front, put an ad in the paper and pray that someone shows up, hire someone like myself that can market your house properly and get it SOLD!

EXIT ON TIME REALTY
7045 Campus Drive 201
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
Fax: 719-266-2186
Office Number: 719-321-3948

Email: Rondi @ Rondilambeth.com

Hello my name is Rondi with EXIT Realty and I am here to talk with you about pricing your house. Did you know that according to officials that 70% of Real Estate Agents didn’t sell a single house last year? This is why I want to take a few minutes to explain why pricing correctly is one of the single most important decisions you can make when putting your house up for sale.

As EXIT Realty’s #1 Real Estate agent in Colorado Springs I have seen many games that can be played on unsuspecting seller. Strange as it may seem, some agents overprice listings on purpose! You are probably asking yourself, why would an agent do this? How can an agent make money, if a listing never sells?

Over the next few minutes, I would like to share with you some pricing pitfalls to avoid and how together, we can come up with a realistic price and a fair market value. One thing I have learned is by pricing your house correctly in the beginning, is that you will obtain a higher offer, a faster sale and in the end, put more money in your pocket.

Lenders have wised up from approving loans faster than the paperwork can be filled out. Appraisers are facing more scrutiny from lenders and banking institutions. They want to KNOW that the property is worth the investment. The last thing they want is another foreclosure to their growing portfolio.

Today, not only does the house need to meet appraiser’s opinion, but more often than not, outside overviews are ordered by lenders. These are referred to as “Field Reviews” and are done to make certain that the appraiser was accurate in their value assessment. Even if you find a buyer who is willing to overpay you, it will still need to appraise.

As I mentioned earlier, many agents that will accept overpriced listings for several reasons, lack of knowledge, need for inventory or just competing against other agents.

One reason why agents are happy to take overpriced listings is the need to have inventory to advertise. They take these buyer calls and then direct them to homes that are priced correctly. The Buyers they obtain will quickly realize that your house is overpriced when they compare it to other homes which are priced lower and offer more amenities.

In today’s real estate market, there really is no shortcut when it comes to pricing. Even pricing correctly does not guarantee a sale. Having a professional agent like myself, who offers an aggressive marketing plan that is joined with proper pricing, will attract a greater number of qualified buyers.

When we get together I will present a pricing and marketing plan that will get your house the most exposure and will offer value to qualified buyers. This will result in a greater chance of getting your house sold, with a minimum amount of inconvenience to you and your family. I look forward to working with you and adding your name to my list of satisfied clients.

EXIT ON TIME REALTY
7045 Campus Drive 201
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
Fax: 719-266-2186
Office Number: 719-321-3948

Rondi @ RondiLambeth.com

Listening to a Real Estate agent that has their interests in front of yours can be a big mistake. I must admit that I have a problem, I am often Brutally Honest.  Being honest is not the problem, but I know I could improve on the way I deliver the message.

I don’t do the sugar-coating thing well. I tend to tell it like it is and live with the consequences. I won’t tell you what you want to hear, unless I believe it to be the truth. It really makes things easy to remember.

When you work with me, you might hear more than you want to hear about the house. I might get in the way sometimes as if I were buying the house myself. Sometimes I will want repairs made that the buyer doesn’t seem to care about or is not aware of. That’s just how I am.

If I am representing you as a buyer, I might tell you all of the things that the seller would rather have you overlook. I will more than likely be at the home inspection and in addition to thoroughly looking at the items that the home inspector discovers, I might ask him to look at things that he didn’t discover or mention. I will also let you know as a buyer that repairs done by sellers are often done with the cheapest materials and least expensive labor that the seller can find. This doesn’t always equate to the best results, so I will often recommend that we get a bid from someone who knows how to do the repair correctly, at a fair price. I might tell you that the house you like is over priced, or not the best value. Isn’t that the type of honesty you deserve?

If I am your listing agent I will tell you the recommended list price based on market conditions, not your needs or debt. That’s not to say I am not flexible at all or sympathetic to your financial situation, but I will give you the real price, even if you don’t like it. I will recommend the work needed to get the home sold and lead you through the selling process. I will work with you on improvements that need to be made by providing contractors and handyman that will perform their jobs as professionals. I will be available to return your calls timely and with real answers. Don’t be surprised if I tell you your home is worth less than some other agents will tell you. I won’t give you a price that is 20% above what I believe is the real value just to get your signature on the listing agreement. I might offer to show you the other homes that a buyer will look at in your price range to show you the reason your home needs to be priced correctly.

After all, what sign do you want to have hung in front of your home in 90 days?

or

If your agent of choice is unable to put your interests first, you need to find one that will.

Click here to read my recommendations for buyer’s and seller’s that I have represented in the past.

Market Condition Report for the Big Bear Area

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

Click here to see the details on these 13 homes.

With 812 active listings on the market currently, the inventory has fallen about 8% in the past 30 days.

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

Listing Courtesy of Keller Williams / David Cartwright

Listing Courtesy Century 21 Bonnie Blue

Listing Courtesy of Premier Propeties Sotheby's Tom Benson

Listing Courtesy of Premier Properties Sotheby's Int. Tom Benson

As of this morning, we have 40 bank owned  homes (REO’s) on the market, that’s only 4.84% of the 826 active listings. Please call or email if you want to purchase a bank owned home in Big Bear,

I will get you the best deal.

Originally listed in July for $780,000

Price reduced in August to $760,000

Price reduced today (Sept 15) to $689,000

Personally, I think it’s still listed too high.  This part of Laurelhurst just doesn’t command the same price points (Waterfront excluded) as other central areas of the neighborhood.  That, paired with the fact that it needs significant upgrades (kitchen, baths, etc.) I wouldn’t be surprised if it continued to sit on the market.  A price in the high $500s or at least low $600s seems more appropriate.

Gold stars to the sellers nonetheless!  They have been aggressive with their price reductions and timely too.  With the deadline for the tax credit expiring November 30th, showing they’re serious with price reductions is crucial if they want to attract first-time buyers.

Erin Schedler

Contact Erin to schedule a showing appointment or for more information.

*Listing information and photo courtesy Brian Shields, RE/MAX Town Center and the NWMLS

If you read my last post (http://windermereblog.com/2009/09/04/just-sold-4747-45th-ave-ne-laurelhurst/), I talked a bit about seller strategies in this market.  Case in point!  I’m giving a virtual “gold star” to these sellers, for they recognized the reality of the market, priced it to sell, and were aggressive about price reductions.  Their reward?  A closed transaction in a little over a month.

The home originally listed at $550k.  The sellers dropped it $25k after 2 weeks on the market.  Big price reduction? Absolutely.  But this sends a signal to buyers that your serious, and are willing to work WITH them to get it sold.  The closed price of $500,000 shows the sellers agreed to take another $25k off the list price during offer negotiations.   My best guess is this was money back at closing for repairs or buyer closing costs. 

Keep in mind, giving money back to buyers doesn’t always have to be a loss entirely.  If you “credit” money back at closing instead of reducing the purchase price, the amount is actually a tax write-off.    It’s considered a “loss on sale”.  Keep this in mind if you’re in a negotiating position.  Simply reducing your purchase price to appease a buyer is not as financially savvy as a credit.

Bottom line, these sellers worked with the market they were in and were rewarded.  $50,000 off the original list price certainly seems like a lot, but I bet they would have had to come down that much eventually to get it sold.  They were just more aggressive about it, buyers paid attention…and made an offer.

It’s hard out there for a seller. At the moment, there are way more of you than there are buyers, which means that thousands of homes for sale in Chicago will not actually sell this year.

Consider this, one little stat plucked from the Chicago Association of Realtors’ weekly report: In the third week of August, just 206 condo sales closed citywide — a 55% plunge over that same week two years ago.

So if you want your property to be among the lucky ones, it’s time to be realistic. Extremely realistic, as in flinty-eyed, steely-spined, flat-out ruthlessly business-minded about the sale of an asset that you — but not your prospective buyers — may have invested with an emotional value. It’s time to look strictly at the numbers.

If you don’t, buyers will. Market information is easily available these days, and any competent realtor can run the comps to determine the average sales price and market time of homes in your neighborhood. Every buyer will know that the condo upstairs sold for $30,000 less than you are asking, or that it took your neighbor across the street eight months to sell his house.

Sellers often say things like: I don’t want to lose money. I need to sell it for at least (insert desired price here). Let’s just test the market. If someone likes my house, won’t they just offer less if they think the price is too high? I’m not desperate; I don’t have to sell it. My house is special.

And then they price the house based on factors that, when you get right down to it, have nothing to do with its current market value. Honestly, the market truly doesn’t care that you bought it three years ago for $425,000. In today’s slumping economy, similar houses may be selling for $350,000.

The longer a house languishes on the market, the harder it becomes to sell. I often see homes that have endured multiple price reductions over many months. Once a property gets sucked into this sad spiral, the seller usually winds up with an offer well below what he might have commanded if he’d just priced it properly to start.

I sold my last two listings in about five weeks, at 96 to 98% of the asking price. That’s far better than average, and it’s because I was working with realistic sellers who carefully sized up the current market before deciding on a price.

So, as I advise all my sellers, take a long look at those comps. Try to forget about how much you like your house, or what you paid for it, or how much money you hope to walk away with. Pretend you’re a business analyst coolly assessing a deal. Consider what similar assets have recently sold for, and price accordingly.

If the price is right, a willing buyer may be closer than you think.

The home on 4747  45th Ave NE just closed today.   Stats:

• Original list price: $638,000
• List price when offer was made: $550,000
• Cumulative days on market: 311
• Final sale price:  $535,000 (17% under original list)

I think this is another example of the state of the market, and realities sellers are facing.  Buyers today want to get a “screaming deal”.  They need to see price reductions and time on market before they feel they are getting a bargain.  When they write an offer, it’s usually still under list price and most often includes an inspection condition. 

What does this mean if you’re thinking of selling?  Be ready for a battle, and to wait a while.  It’s easy to see these statistics and think “I’ll just price it higher than my ideal price”.  That way, after price reductions and low offers you still end up at your original goal proceeds.

Be careful with this strategy!  If you overprice your home, buyers will know.  There is a lot of inventory on the market.  I your home is priced higher than comparable homes in the area, it won’t get a second look online, much less actual showings. 

It is wiser to price your home to market, have terrific photos and staging for online appeal, and make the home as accessible as you can (easy showing hours, open houses, etc.).   If your home has great value compared to the other listings around, it will be apparent to buyers.  They will be more apt to write a better offer, sooner.

Erin Schedler

Check out this video by Kay Kammeyer, Broker/Realtor, about how location affects the price of your home – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zU06ypDdGA

When you begin to think about selling your home and choosing an agent to assist you, one key point is do not use the CMA (Competitive Market Analysis) as the choosing factor.  It is so critical to price your home right at the beginning of the marketing.  Often seller’s believe we can start out with X$ and see what happens and drop the price if we don’t have any success – it can’t hurt.

It is very difficult to get a seller to believe that it can hurt…  that the initial 30 days are a crucial window.  As agent’s work with buyers they often pull up the listings each day through their MLS and if they have been searching for a month or more they will often search new listings that have come into the system in just the last few days each time~  and therefore if yours has been listed for 30 or more days they simply do Not view your listing again.  The exception to this that I have run into has been when the buyers previewed a house and liked it, kept it in the possibles, and checked the pricing and listing for changes. However, this is not often.

The other problem with over pricing the house in the initial days is that many potential buyers do not look at or consider your home.  I remember looking for our very first home long ago and when a house was 10 or 15 thousand above our affordability range we put it out of the stack to consider.  This is even a more important factor in a market such as this when there are many homes out there to look at.

So a quick piece of advice is to carefully consider All factors when choosing your agent.  Some agents will pull CMA’s using comparable homes that they know will boost the suggested value.   But I Highly recommend that you consider the agent’s marketing, support (their office, mentor, and links), knowledge, and entusiasm at a much higher rating.  These factors are essential to having viewings and working with buyers, and these agents are likely to produce a market value that is more in line with the real market.

Good Luck

In harmony & Balance

Christy

When you start your search for a second home in Big Bear you should spend some time looking at the different locations. Location drives land value and that is why the same house is worth more or less in different areas.

Lakefront homes for example have higher land values. The current land value combined with the improvements (house) establishes value. That is why a home on the lake that is functionally obsolete will still have a high value of one million dollars if it is located in a deep water location with a view. 

This also explains why a beautiful home in a less desirable area may be worth little more than the building costs, and sometimes less. Land has not been selling recently because construction costs are higher per square foot than the existing inventory pricing.

 Most homes that were built in the 90’s for example had a building cost of less than $100 per square foot. Currently we are seeing building costs between $150 – $225 per square foot using a licenced and insured contractor.

These are the different neighborhoods in the Big Bear area, and the average price per square foot sold year to date.

• Lakefront – $516.44
• Big Bear Lake West – $227.30*
• Big Bear Lake Central – $186.41*
• Big Bear Lake East – $199.93*
• Fox Farm – $197.14
• Moonridge – $201.01
• Fawnskin – $220.82
• Big Bear City – $147.83
• Whispering Forest – $160.11
• Sugarloaf – $125.58
• Erwin Lake – $124.67
• Meadowbrook - $216.36
• Baldwin Lake – $147.66
• Lake Williams – $117.81

*Does not include lakefront home sales in these areas.

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

When you are ready to enter the market to sell your home one of the first things you will need is a CMA or Comparative Market Analysis.

A CMA is a comprehensive detailed report of the real estate market inside your neighborhood and the surrounding area that shows you the statistical information that you need to arrive at a correct price at which to offer your home for sale on the market.

In this report you will find the ACTIVE LISTINGS – Homes that are presently on the market….YOUR Competition.

CANCELED, WITHDRAWN and EXPIRED Listings – Homes that have been removed or expired off of the market.

PENDING SALES – Homes that have gone Under Contract and are waiting to close.

SOLDS – Properties that have actually Sold and Closed and are what become the COMPS or Comparative Properties that are used to price your home and are used by Appraisers to appraise the properties to determine Appraised value.   These are what you want to give the strongest consideration.

You will be able to review all of the important details about each of these homes such as year built, number of days it has been on the market, compare the rooms offered, lot size and description, features of home, condition, additions and updating of home, the original list price and the current offering price.   The CMA will include photos of the homes exteriors and if you want to look at the interiors of each home to see how they visual compare you can be provided an on line report where you can view virtual tours of all the homes.

This report will also include easy to read color charts to help you visually see the comparisons of these properties!   It will also show you the Average, Low and High Price in each category.

When reviewing the Sold properties you can see the List price of home, the Price that it actually sold for, the number of days it took to get it sold, the % of Sold to List and the date that it closed.

The Real Estate Market changes just like the Financial, Stock and World Markets so you always need to look at the data to see what the market shows during the period of time that you are in.   Most CMA’s are typically done for the previous 6 months.   There are many factors that can have an affect on the value of a property such as the Supply – number of homes on the market and the Demand – number of buyers in the market.   You also need to consider if this factor is increasing, decreasing or constant.    The value of your real estate can also be threatened by outside influences such as changes in governmental policy and the economy.

When you are selling a home in a market that is Price driven like we are in today it is CRITICAL that you price the home properly in the beginning or you can spend many days on the market with no results.

So if you have thoughts of putting your home on the market give The HeartHangers a call today and let us put together a Comparative Market Analysis for you to review. We can sit down at your kitchen table with a nice hot cup of coffee or iced tea and help you to decide the offering price of your home. And while we are there we can also give you some ideas on things that you might need to do to prepare your home for the market!

Buyer’s often ask the question “What should I offer?” before they find a specific house that they want to place an offer on. They want to know the formula for the list price verses the actual purchase price that they will pay. They ask questions like “If we shop in the $400,000 range, what price do you think we can get it for?” I always respond the same. It depends on the house and if it is priced correctly. How long has the house been on the market at this price? This is a more important question than, “How long has the house been on the market?”

Home owners don’t have to price their home correctly, they just won’t sell their house until they do. Maybe we should just call them “Listers”. Unlike sellers, “Listers” waste an agents time and inflate the price’s of other “Listers”.

Question’s that I ask a home owner that says they want to sell is “Do you want to list your home, or sell it?” Do you want to be a lister or a seller? When do you want me to start telling you the truth?

Once I have explained to a buyer that selling prices are set by the market and not the sellers or their agent, I will let them know that sellers and their agents will list property (incorrectly) based upon other criteria. They will list based upon the debt on the property, what they paid, the improvements that they have done, the amount that their neighbor (a lister) has listed at, what they need or want to have to be able to fulfill their future plans etc. This is a mistake that will cost the Listers money in the long run, if they ever sell.

Keep in mind that a lister is in charge of what price they will ask, but the buyer will decide how much the house will sell for. Listers are different than sellers, because they don’t need to sell.

We have a lot of Listers in our current market. With 911 homes on the market and only 56 closings in the past 30 days, it appears that we have about 6% sellers and 94% Lister’s.

One thing is for sure, you can sell your house if you are willing to price it correctly.

So, back to the question, “What should I offer?”

Once you have found that house you want to buy, the question really is, what is the current market value?

• Spend time looking at homes in the area that you want to buy.
• Have your agent show you recent comparable sales.
• Be reasonable based upon the information that you have collected.
• Ask your agent their opinion.
• Have your agent contact the seller/Lister’s agent to see if there has been any activity previously that will help understand the seller’s motivation.

Please call me if you are a seller or a buyer……….

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

As per the Bay East Association of Realtors, days on Market (DOM) for the Fremont area year-to-date is around 76. The median single family home price in Fremont for April was $484,000. As of the last day of April there were 304 active homes in Fremont. At current selling rates this means there is approximately 3 months of inventory in Fremont remaining.

Homes Sold by Meena in Fremont 

To see all my virtual tours click:

Meena’s Virtual Tours

http://www.helpusellachievers.com

One thing that we are guilty of when trying to sell our house is overpricing. Naturally, we love our house and feel its worth whatever we think its worth. This may not necessarily be true in the minds of your ideal buyer. You see overpricing your home will actually attract fewer potential buyers and cause it to sit on the market. And as you know, the longer the house sits on the market, the less likely it is to get sold. There are other potential negative effects of having your home of the market for too long:

1. You will get a low level of brokerage activity. The showings tend to decrease for homes that are perceived as being priced at “out of market” ranges.

2. Less views by buyers. As mentioned above, less buyers will view your home as it out of their price range.

3. Difficulty in financing. Lenders tend to look at fair-value pricing to determine the amount they will finance. Often, they will make the buyer come up with the difference in cash.

4. Negative perception. The longer your home stays on the market, the greater the chance of it being perceived as “stale.” This will still be the case if you reduce the price.

Bottom line: Pricing your home at the right place will exponentially increase the number of potential buyers and reduce the time it takes to sell.

If you want an expert opinion to judge how much your home is worth or if you are a buyer looking for homes in 94539 zip code, give me a call at 510-279-9580. For more information you can also go to my Help-U-Sell Achievers Realty Website at http://www.helpusellachievers.com

• We don’t seem to want to admit, but we all know it is the single most important factor in determining if your home will sell.
• It’s not something most real estate agents or sellers want to talk about.
• If your house has been on the market for more than 60 days and doesn’t have an offer, you’re ignoring it.
• If you home is in good repair, is easy to show, and hasn’t got an offer, you’ve overlooked it.
• You can’t sell in this market until you get it right.
• Do you know what the secret is?

Click here to see the answer

Previous posts on this topic:

When do you want me to start telling you the truth?

How Stale is your Listing?

Spin the bottle

The price is wrong!

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Click here for property details

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

• 2 were bank owned “40%”
• None of these homes were short sales
• 3 were organic (traditional seller)

I can show you any home for sale in Big Bear.

Search the Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service)

Search the Southern California MLS  (Multiple Listing Service)

Steve Hirschler

Associate, The Tim Wood Group

Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery

42153 Big Bear Blvd.

P.O. BOX 6820

Big Bear Lake, CA 92315

stevehirschler@gmail.com

909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889

Fax 909 866-3531

http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com

Follow me on Twitter

Subscribe to “Ask an Expert, Big Bear Real Estate Blog”

Sellers, pricing a home in a recovering housing market is vitally important!  Unfortunately, you can ask 5 different Realtors, and they will all give you different answers.  Are any of them wrong?  Perhaps!  It depends on whose point of view you are talking about, what type of market you are in, who the competition is, and what type of product you are offering.

From a buyer’s standpoint, the price on a home should be seen as a ballpark number, accuracy TBD (to be determined) by our own careful analysis.  How did they get that number? What was going through their heads?  Are they motivated? Are they following the comparables or are they pricing high or low?  The answer is that you will probably never know the truth, and really you shouldn’t care because YOU plan to come to your own conclusions.  You will study the history of the sales in the area, understand the dynamics of the current market, and look carefully at the competing homes for sale.

However, Sellers, don’t think you can slap any old number on your house, because the vast majority of buyers are NOT highly analytical, nor are their agents.  They are emotional, competitive, nervous, etc.  For that reason, pricing, and the response it creates, is crucial.

Whether you are a buyer or a seller (or both!) here are two key things to consider:

1) Be realistic about the house and it’s shortcomings. This is especially difficult when you are the seller and it is your primary residence.  We tend to have inflated views of our properties, and no one wants to be a Debbie Downer and tell us otherwise.  Is your floor plan unusual or choppy (attached sun rooms are almost always a negative)? What are the pros and cons of your location (and of your competitors’ locations?) How close are you to traffic/power lines/stop signs/bus routes? How are your schools, and how are similar homes in the nearby (and slightly better) school districts priced?

2) Know the risks of pricing high. We are tempted to “test the market” and price a little high because we want to leave room for negotiation, or we don’t trust our Realtor to put our interests above his or her own, or we think that we’ll never know how much money we can get for our home if we don’t try for more.  All are valid concerns.  Here are the risks: In a high-end market homes are like Chanel, Gucci, Tiffany’s, Louis Vuitton.  They are “blue chip” as Carol Rodoni (a local and highly respected real estate analyst) says, and “blue chip homes don’t go on SALE.  Kmart homes do.”  If you have a luxury property and you have to discount your home because you have tested the market, there is a high likelihood that you will end up eroding your potential sales price by a good 10%.  So, it is better to price realistically – you will walk away with more money at the end.  In addition, pricing a home high that is in a middle market (ie. Sunnyvale, Almaden, Santa Clara, Willow Glen – which are currently stabilizing) can have detrimental effects on the surrounding home values if you end up having to discount the property later.  Buyers will smell blood in the water and there will be no chance of you getting what the home is really worth.

When is it ok to price a little high?  In an escalating market, or in a market where multiple offers are occuring frequently, or in a market where you have a uniquely desireable property (be very careful here – see number 1).

Stay tuned for Part IIon this complicated topic!