• A seller would almost never accept a contract with a home sale contingency without a kickout clause to allow them to move on to a different buyer that didn't have a home sale contingency.
   
  
• There are only 5 properties in the MLS that are under contract with kickout clauses.

It would seem that most buyers are likely waiting to make offers until they have their own properties under contract (thus eliminating the need for the kickout clause) AND/OR most sellers are not accepting offers with home sale contingencies unless the buyer's house is already under contract (thus eliminating the need for the kickout clause).

If you are a buyer, I would certainly suggest the strategy outlined above (and the only one that is apparently working with sellers right now) --- get a contract on your house and THEN make an offer on the property you would like to purchase!

1. On April 1, buyer activity for 2020 was 3.5% stronger than 2019.
    
2. As of yesterday, buyer activity for 2020 was 5.3% slower than 2019.

• Your neighbor's home is a Colonial with 2400 SF split between the first floor (1200 SF) and the second floor (1200 SF) and is built on a crawlspace.
   
• Your home is a ranch style home with 1200 SF on the main level and 1200 SF finished in the basement.

These two homes will not be seen as having an equivalent value -- not by potential purchasers and not by an appraiser.

Above grade square footage has a higher value attached to it -- both specifically by appraisers, and generally by purchasers.  Even if all of the other factors (condition, age, location, bedrooms, bathrooms) are the same between two houses, if one has a significant portion of the square footage in the basement then it will be seen as less valuable than the home that has all of its square footage above grade.

• January = best recent January (by far)
• February = worst recent February
  
• March = best recent March
• April = worst recent April

• We should likely not underestimate the impact of lower inventory levels.  Some sellers are waiting to put their houses on the market, which is not giving would-be buyers as many homes to buy.
   
• This 7% decline in contract activity is only a 5% decline when comparing 2020 to 2018.  Thus, this year is slower than normal, but last year might have been more active than normal.
   
• There were more contract in 2020 all the way through mid-April-ish, so this downward trend in buyer activity has largely all taken place over the past 30 to 35 days.

• Nine foot ceilings with drywall, windows and/or doors on three sides providing lots of natural light, luxury vinyl plank flooring, recessed lighting throughout, a second kitchen, home theater, guest suite, etc.  Wow!
   
• Eight foot ceilings with drywall, windows and/or doors on two sides providing quite a bit natural light, carpet, decent lighting throughout.
   
• Eight foot ceilings with ceiling tiles instead of drywall, windows and/or doors on one side providing some natural light, carpet and/or linoleum flooring, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with ceiling tiles, several small windows, vinyl flooring, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with ceiling tiles, one small window, painted concrete floors, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with an open ceiling (no drywall or ceiling tiles), no windows, bare concrete floor, cinder block walls limited lighting.
   
  
• Seven foot ceilings with an open ceiling, no windows, concrete floor, cinder block walls with clear evidence of past moisture intrusion, limited lighting.
   
• Six and a half foot ceilings with an open ceiling, no windows, an irregular concrete floor, cinder block walls with clear evidence of ongoing moisture intrusion, floor drain and trenches leading to it, limited lighting.
   
• Six foot ceiling with an open ceiling, no windows, a dirt floor, stone foundation walls with mortar crumbling and falling out, clear paths of ongoing water entry, one light bulb with a pull string.

• At the start of March, this year's home buying activity was at a record pace - easily eclipsing each of the past two years.
   
• By mid-April, this year's trajectory of home buying activity had slowed down below last year's pace of buying activity.
   
  
• By early May (now) this year's trajectory of home buying activity had slowed down beyond the pace of contract activity seen in 2018.
  

1. The roof is actively leaking.
2. The air conditioning system is not working at all.
3. One of the toilets wobbles a bit when rocked back and forth.
   
4. Two closet doors do not latch properly.
5. One of the bathroom sinks drains slowly.
6. The weather stripping at the back door is torn.
7. There are two small holes in the vinyl siding.

1. You risk the seller having knee-jerk reaction of thinking you are asking for too many small repairs and they could adopt a "take it or leave it" approach and refuse to make any repairs.
    
2. The seller might also say -- OK -- I'll address five out of seven of the issues -- the last five!  Here, they would seem to be responsive to your request, but would have missed the two most important (and most expensive) items on the list.

1. The other home was, indeed, just "a few streets over" but that also put it on the edge of the neighborhood, on a busy road, with a front yard that parents wouldn't let their children plan in for fear of them running into the road where cars often travel past at 45 miles an hour. 
    
   
2. The other home was, indeed, larger -- but the entire house needed to be updated, as it had wallpaper, a dated kitchen, dated flooring, etc.
     
   
3. The other home had a basement one-car garage instead of a main level two-car garage. 
   

Furthermore, aside from all of these differences in the two houses --- the other ($350K) house is not available any longer --- and there aren't three other houses just like it that the buyer can decide to buy. 

In this case, by focusing on this one not-actually-that-similar sale, the buyer has put themselves in a situation where they might miss out on purchasing a great home because of how they are viewing the market based on one comparable sale.

THE SELLER'S STATED PERSPECTIVE

I am confident that I can sell my house for $350K.  After all, my friend owned a very similar house and he just sold it in a week, with multiple offers, for $360K!

THE LARGER CONTEXT

Just a few items...

1. Your friend's house was in a highly desirable neighborhood within walking distance to downtown Harrisonburg -- while your home is on a busy road and has train tracks directly behind it.
    
   
2. Three homes nearly identical to your home, on your street, even facing the same direction as your home, built within two years of your home, updated at the same time as your home, sold in the past three months for $320K, $325K and $330K.
    
3. You have lived a busy life over the past few years, with work, family, and other commitments and you haven't had a chance to tackle the many small maintenance and upkeep items that a home often requires.  Your friend is a retired general contractor and has spent all of his free time over the past two years fixing, replacing, and improving countless aspects of his home's interior, exterior and grounds. 
   

Again, by focusing on this one not-actually-that-similar sale, the seller has put themselves in a situation where they might miss out on selling their home because of how they are viewing the market based on one comparable sale.

The Main Takeaway

As a buyer or as a seller -- don't focus on just one comparable sale when deciding on a reasonable price to pay or to ask -- look for the larger context!