Common Seller Mistakes -
May 06, 2016 13:13
Common Seller Mistakes -
Portland real estate is hot right now, but even in a sellers market sellers can make mistakes when it come to listing and pricing their properties. Here is a list we compiled of some of the most common mistakes we see.
Over Pricing the Home:
There are many reasons we believe that our homes are worth more than the neighbors or the house down the street. For starters we live there so that alone should increase the value right? Well, as much as we love you and trust us we do, unless your home is made of solid gold it is probably pretty comparable to your neighbors. That being said, many sellers price their home based on active comparables rather than sold data. Realtors always bring both data to listing appointments as both are important, but it is always good to price your home with the solds and under the active comps. This will make your home more desirable and more likely to get multiple offers for over the asking price.
Another reason we overprice our homes is due to considering amenities that we have in our homes. Lots of people update their homes and expect to get 100% of their money returned during resale. This is usually not the case and most home owners can expect to recoup 60-70% of the original money spent on the upgrades. The biggest factor when pricing a home is location, size and then condition and style of the home. Granite counters and stainless appliances are a nice thing, but not necessarily a determining factor on price.
Believing the AVM is Set in Stone:
AVM's (automated valuation models) like Zillow's zestimate are good tools for some, but in general they have about an 8% margin both ways. With knowing that, a home with a zestimate of $500,000 could really be valued at $460,000 up to $540,000 and we all know that is a large gap in pricing. A home that would sell for $460,000 that is priced at $540,000 could sit on the market for weeks or even months.
Not Listening to the Market:
After listing your home you may have a great amount of activity or none at all, this is where the market will tell you if your home is over or under priced. Pricing a home for sale is an art and can take some finessing. Within a few days to a week on the market you will know if you have a home that is priced within the market range. Buyers determine the market, seller's do not. A home is only worth what someone will pay for it regardless what you need out of the transaction to move on. This can be a hard pill to swallow if expectations are too high and pricing is done without sold comps in mind as mentioned above.
It is wise when selling your home to communicate openly with your agent about what is going on with your home. there are things that happen behind the scenes that you don't see when selling a home. Internet traffic, calls to your Realtor and such to name a few. It is good to be an active party when selling your home and be up to date on activity in all forms.
We here at Brian Porter Real estate value our sellers and love working together to sell homes. If you would like more info on the process or help with the price on your home, please feel free to call or text us today.
Here is a sneak peek of a new listing we have coming up soon:
