We Do Not Want to List Your Over Priced Home

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Terry & Bonnie

Some sellers don’t understand the current real estate market.

They have fuzzy visions of listing their home: flocks of eager buyers will

ascend to their level of home ownership and buy an overpriced house.

They believe in the words of comic Judy Tenuta, “ It can happen! “

I hate to have to break the news to many optimistic sellers BUT

– it ain’t gonna happen! Buyers with adequate funds have researched

their area market. They are probably working with a seasoned agent

who has helped to educate them about the local market. If you are

overpriced by any amount, buyers just don’t look at your home seriously.

We recently made a listing presentation to a seller that had his home

for sale for over a year by another agent. An overpriced year, overpriced

by about 1/3 of current value, so not even close. Results: the seller had

1 showing in a year.

We had a heart-to-financial-heart talk and we gave him the facts.

Even if he found someone dumb enough to pay what he was asking, it

would not close because the home would not appraise for even close to

his price. He argued that someone with cash could buy it. In our experience,

people with that kind of cash are not careless with their money.

We encouraged this seller to get an appraisal so he could make a

decision about selling for market price. This information came as a shock.

Sadly, the reality of a home’s worth today is a shock in many cases.

The seller wanted to know why his former agent hadn’t explained this to him.

Yes, we were curious, too.

We do not want to list your over priced house. We read industry experts

and they predict further price erosions later this year. Whether this

happens or not, sellers should get an independent appraisal if there is any

question about their home’s value.

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The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate,

the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in

West Michigan. We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

Contact Terry 616-292-7263

OUR FLICKR PHOTOSTREAM

Grand Rapids MI Home Seller – Asking More Doesn’t Mean You Will Get More

Posted on February 3, 2011 by Terry & Bonnie

Grand Rapids Michigan Home Seller – Asking More Doesn’t Mean You Will Get More

About one third of homes listed on the Multiple Listing Service do not sell.

They might be over priced, in very poor condition, bad location, a weird

floor plan or some other oddness about them. They will sell at the right price,

which is what we are trying to convey.

The correct price is so crucial to the sale of your home, that if you miss

the mark the first time, you are chasing a downward trend that is very

difficult, if not impossible, to catch.

This can be tricky, as you don’t want to under price the market.

But the market doesn’t hold still, what was a great price a few months

ago is not a great price today. You can’t rely on any market information

over 3-6 months old. You need to know what is happening today.

Example : 440/981 = Days On Market/Total Days On Market

The stats above are for a house in the Grand Rapids market that we saw

on the MLS today. You would think that in almost 33 months on the

market, this homeowner would have realized that their price is not in

line with homes that are selling. Sure, there have been reductions on

this home’s price, but not enough and not soon enough.

Be smart about selling your home. Use a Realtor who can give you the

straight facts, not someone who tells you what you want to hear.

Unless you want to be like the seller above, chasing a downward market

and watching your competition use you as a price comparison.

Should You Listen to Your Realtor or Your Instincts?

Free White Paper for Sellers: Avoid 11 Mistakes that Could Cost

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate,

the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in

West Michigan. Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing

metropolitan area with a diverse business community, great medical

research & services, numerous universities, plus lively arts and

entertainment of all kinds.

We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

Contact Terry 616-292-7263

OUR FLICKR PHOTOSTREAM

Why Pricing Your Home is Soooo Crucial to Getting Top Dollar

Posted on December 2, 2008 by Terry & Bonnie

When we sit down with potential clients to list their home, there are so many issues

and hot buttons to discuss. Inevitably we come to the one where we really have to

agree to get the home sold quickly and for the most money.

P-R-I-C-E

Most homeowners want to start high and then come down – if they have to – to sell.

Of course, they are hoping their home is an exception, it will sell for more than the

market value of all the other homes in the area. We see this over and over again.

If you don’t price your home within the price bracket it will eventually sell for, you

are hurting your chances of selling it for top dollar. If you price your home correctly,

You are not giving away money!!

I repeat, YOU ARE NOT GIVING AWAY MONEY.

This phantom money that you think you might get if the one person comes along

who will do anything, pay anything to own your “special” home does not exist.

Let me repeat that –

The uneducated buyer with money falling out of their pockets, sprinkled in fairy dust,

so you can make the money you would like to out of your home sale —–

DOES NOT EXIST!!!

You are not letting go of money, you are letting go of the dream scenario where you

get the price that is 25-30% over market value. We have seen literally thousands of

home sales and it just isn’t going to happen.

What will happen, is your home will be posted on the MLS, online, many places where

buyers can look at it. Buyers then compare your price to others, and say, why would

I buy this house?? There are 10-15 others I can look at that are competitively priced

and look great.

Then…. they are gone.

They don’t come back and revisit your home as an option. Other homes are new on

the market to consider. Your home has been rejected as: too expensive, too

much work, not what they are looking for.

Buyer Activity on Listed Homes

The charts above illustrate the buyer trends we tell our sellers about. These

charts of buyer activity are on actual listings that are currently listed by us.

You can see that the first month is usually the only month that gets

high traffic.

Some of our sellers will listen, most don’t.

Sadly, two, six, eight months later, we are still trying to get them to agree to

the price they should be listed at, if they want their home to sell. Chasing this

downward price spiral is not the best way to get top dollar from your home.

When it first hits the market it has the most exposure and best chance of getting

the best price!

Have questions about pricing your Grand Rapids home?

Contact me directly at 1-888-240-1968 ext 0

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Tag Archives: Pricing your Grand Rapids MI Home to Sell

We Do Not Want to List Your Over Priced Home

Grand Rapids MI Home Seller – Asking More Doesn’t Mean You Will Get More

Grand Rapids Michigan Home Seller – Asking More Doesn’t Mean You Will Get More

Why Pricing Your Home is Soooo Crucial to Getting Top Dollar

P-R-I-C-E

I repeat, YOU ARE NOT GIVING AWAY MONEY.

DOES NOT EXIST!!!

Then…. they are gone.