The most significant factor in the sale of your home is the price you place on your house. When you price the house too low, you may sell fast but lose thousands of dollars. On the contrary, if you price your property too high, it may stay on the market. The longer a house remains on the market, the less interesting it becomes to potential buyers. Not only is the property less interesting, but people begin to feel suspicious about why it’s not selling. Buyers who are have seen your property repeatedly drop prices or stay on the market for extended periods of time wonder what’s wrong with the house. To sell quickly and for top dollar, here are some things to consider when pricing your home for sale.
💲 Asking Price vs. Selling Price
You can drive around your community or browse houses online to gain an idea of what some sellers are asking for their houses. However, just because a seller is asking a particular amount does not mean a buyer is willing to pay that much.
Your asking price is the dollar amount you set as the price for your home when you list your house for sale. The selling price of your home is the price the buyer paid.
Remember, if you drop your asking price – sometimes even as little as a single time – you could be condemning your house to a bad reputation. It’s better to price your house right the first time than it is to risk lowering the price if it doesn’t sell quickly.
🏠 Determine Your Home’s Value
There are several ways to estimate your home’s current market value. Notice the word estimate. While pricing your home efficiently and competitively the first time is paramount to the successful sale, pricing properties can be somewhat tricky.
Home values shift and sway. The real estate market is influenced by how many sellers there are vs. the number of buyers. In a seller’s market, home values can skyrocket. In a buyer’s market, those same properties can be worth far less.
To begin to get an idea of what your home is worth in today’s market, you could begin with a simple and free online home valuation calculator. When you obtain an estimate online, take it with a grain of salt because there’s more room for error than you may realize. There’s no human factor, and home valuations like these are based on data that may or may not be current or current.
Second, you can opt to pay for an independent listing appraisal wherein an appraiser comes to your house to assess its size, condition, location, and information garnered from public records to determine the value of your house.
You can save yourself a lot of time and money by trusting your real estate agent to help you set the best price.
🙋♂️ How Your Real Estate Agent Can Help
Your real estate agent may be more adept at assessing your home’s value than an independent appraiser, and more accurate than an online estimate.
Real estate agents are in the trenches every day, working closely with buyers and sellers to understand their needs. By understanding the needs of buyers and sellers, coupled with constant exposure to the market trends, agents have a keen insight into what your home is worth.
💵 How to Set the Right Price from the Start
To be certain you’re pricing your home correctly from the get-go, your best option is to combine the methods above. Get the online estimate, invest in a listing appraisal, enlist your agent to advise you, and then take a tour of the houses for sale in your area. Know the competition. If your neighbor is selling a house the same model, condition, and age as yours at a lower price, your neighbor will catch the sale.
📝 How to Manage the Negotiation Process
Negotiations, like pricing your home for sale, can be tricky. Don’t be fooled by the dollar amount alone when reviewing offers. Many times, the contingencies included in an offer on a home are what make or break the deal. Some offers have expedited timelines, others are contingent on the sale of the buyer’s current property, and others may request that the seller pay closing costs.
Your real estate agent is an expert at handling negotiations. Agents in real estate know how to communicate assertively and clearly on your behalf. Never talk to the seller or the seller’s agent directly about details of the transaction prior to closing and allow your agent to represent you.
Your real estate agent is the best source of information about the local community and real estate topics. Give Simmsational Real Estate Group a call today at (954) 709-8258 to learn more about local areas, discuss selling a house, or tour available homes for sale.
