REALTOR, ABR SRS
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Guidelines for Pricing Your Home
THE BUYER ALWAYS DETERMINES THE VALUE
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The value of your home is determined by what a buyer is willing to pay in today's market. With the market continuously fluctuating, prices of homes will increase and decrease over time. Having an agent who overprices your home in order to gain your business is the single most detrimental factor to your final sales price. Sellers tend to get emotional about the value of their home, but an experienced agent will be able to get the price correct during the first comparative market analysis. Your home will generate the most excitement during the first few weeks on the market, and if the price is not comparable to homes in the area, you will lose leverage. Buyers and agents do not have a positive opinion of homes that linger on the market for too long. Your property may then become strigmatized and all of your negotiation leverage will be gone. Pricing right and making swift adjustments in your price if you've missed the mark is crucial to the final sales price of your home.
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No amount of staging and upgrades will overcome a home that is out of its price league. Buyers and agents compare your home to other homes in the market using the "big four" indicators of value: location, square footage, style and age. Pricing right and making fast adjustments in your price if you've missed the target is critical because your property does not have a long "shelf life". Generally speaking, buyers and agents do not have a positive opinion of homes that stay on the market longer than the area average.
"Pricing right" creates excitement, attracts more buyer appointments and always leads to a quicker sale for a higher price. Remember price is a moving target because the market is always changing based on the motivation of the other sellers you are competing against. You can select the right price today, go to bed tonight, and wake up to a property that is now overpriced based on new listings entering the market and sellers who decide to reduce their price. Your real estate professional is always watching price closely and advising you of market changes. Be ready to adjust quickly if the market changes. Staying ahead of the changing market and strategically positioning your price against the competition is the only way to win at the Price is Right Game.