Balancing Realistic and Optimistic Pricing Strategies


Balancing Realistic and Optimistic Pricing Strategies
By Scott Rogers • February 25, 2020
Pricing a home in a low inventory, fast moving, market can be tricky... REALISTIC... I'm a firm believer that the best indication of the price for which your house is likely to sell is determined by the price that other buyers recently paid for similar houses. Perhaps we look at what buyers have recently paid and see that they have been paying $250K for houses similar to your home. Perhaps we then conclude that we should list your home for $255K or $259K. OPTIMISTIC... There is also merit in considering how many buyers and sellers are in your particular segment of the market. In many segments of the market there are a lot of buyers -- evidenced by listings in the price range receiving multiple offers. And in those same segments of the market there may very well be very few sellers -- evidenced by extremely low inventory levels. With such an imbalance between buyers and sellers it can be tempting (or reasonable?) to think about pricing your home higher than is justified by recent sales -- assuming that at least one buyer will be willing to outspend other recent buyers. Perhaps this means pricing your home at $275K. The upside of being realistic is that it will likely result in a relatively speedy sale and it may result in multiple offers. If you have multiple offers, you will then be able to carefully choose which buyer to work with based on all of the various terms of their offer. Perhaps this means selling your home for $260K or $263K. The upside of being optimistic is that it may result in a higher sales price than being realistic -- though that could backfire if no buyers make offers because they think your house is overpriced -- and it could be reeled back in if the appraisal performed by the buyer's lender does not support the price agreed to between buyer and seller. Perhaps this mean selling your home for $265K or $270K -- but maybe back down to $260K or $263K. So, in the end, these two different pricing strategies may result in different eventual sales prices -- or might actually result in the same eventual sales price -- but they are bound to result in different processes and experiences. We must be strategic in pricing your home. If you're planning to sell this Spring, let's chat soon about how to best balance being realistic and optimistic given market realities in your segment of our local housing market. Receive Updates by Email Recent Articles: Is There A Price You WOULD Pay For This House? There Are Plenty Of Types Of Houses That Exist That Just Are Not Available To Purchase Home Sales By Price Range In The City Of Harrisonburg Are You Compromising On Aspects Of Your Next Home That You Can Or Cannot Change Later? How Much Slower Are The Winter Months In Our Local Housing Market? Rockingham County and New Home Sales Drive Surge in Area Housing Market Find The Balance Between Optimistic And Realistic Home Pricing Room Size Is Difficult To Understand Solely From Real Estate Photos How Much Would You Value Not Having To Prepare Your Home For Showings? One Out Of Four Homes Is Taking Longer Than A Month To Sell
Have any questions? Contact Scott Rogers at 540-578-0102 or scott@funkhousergroup.com
Based on information from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Association of REALTORS® or its MLS, for the period Jan 1, 2000 through Nov 24, 2024 (unless otherwise noted).
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