According to the National Association
of Realtors, “2005 NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers”,
the typical for-sale-by-owner (FSBO) home sold for $198,200
compared to $230,000 for agent-assisted home sales. This
equates to an extra $31,800 more profit than going it alone!
Step one: Pricing it right
The correct listing price – one
that is neither too high, nor too low – is crucial when advertising
your home for sale.
If your home is priced too high, it
will be overlooked by the serious buyers who are actively comparing
properties, both online and personally. If your home is priced
too low, you have lost your equity when you sell it.
Going for gold can mean going stale
If your home is priced higher than homes comparable to yours,
serious buyers may reject your home immediately without even stepping
foot inside, much less giving you the opportunity to negotiate
with them.
As time passes and your home remains unsold, it begins to appear
“stale”. It is at this point that buyers – even real estate agents
– will begin to wonder if there is something wrong with your home
that caused others to pass it by.
Going low may cost you double
If your home is priced too low, not only have you lost a good
part of your equity when you sell it, when you purchase a new
home, the nest-egg you planned on may get eaten up on downpayments
and closing costs.
Depending upon external circumstances, market values can change
quickly. If you are not constantly informed of new information
pertaining to the real estate market in your area, you may be
leaving your hard earned cash on the table without realizing it.
Sometimes this can equate to many thousands of dollars!
The role of your Agent
One of the primary roles of your Ellen
Realty Group Agent is to inform you of pertinent market values
relating to your property.
Your agent will compare your property against “like” properties
that are listed for sale currently, have been listed for sale
with other agencies but did not sell (and try to investigate why),
properties similar to yours that sold within just a few months,
properties that may have been sold but sold for less than market
value due to unusual circumstances, and more.
There are even circumstances
where buyers, aware of future upward market thrusts, may be
willing to pay more than “current” value in order to secure
property they feel certain will escalate rapidly in value. If
you are not a real estate agent “in the business” you may be
caught unaware of these events, which can cause you to later
regret a low selling price.
