Metrocity Realty

Selling a Home

Determining a Price

Determining the price is a sellers “catch 22”. Rarely do people pay more than the asking price. It does happen occasionally but the terms of the contract are non standard or you are lucky enough to have more than one person wanting it at the same time. So setting a “high” but realistic price is the way to go. The catch 22 is if the price is too high and your place lingers on the market it could get “the lemon tag”. Everyone begins to assume there is something wrong with it because no one is buying. Buyers rarely expect to pay the asking price but they do expect to pay something close to that price. If your asking price is way over the fair price then you don’t get offers.

So how do you determine where to start? History of recent sale is your best guide. Your agent should be able to show you recent sales of properties in the area. The agent should also be able to show you the properties you will be competing with. A fair assessment of this information will reveal the harsh reality of what you are likely to get. The other factor is the agent. If the agent shows an inner strength and confidence it is likely they can get a little more out of the buyers than those agent who lack this. So after determining the likely price you can “add a bit” to test the waters.

But beware generously overpricing your property is likely to cause some if not all the following problems

  1. Reduce sales activity
  2. Reduce responses to advertising 
  3. Lose interested buyers that love your place 
  4. Attracts the wrong buyers 
  5. Eliminates offers 
  6. Helps the competition 
  7. Extends the time on the market
In attempt to solve this pricing problem some agents suggest promoting without a price. There are many ways to do this including auctions, tenders, prices over XXX, using stars or price indicators and so on. These methods have worked wonderfully well for some sellers and seriously disappointed others. Ultimately the choice is yours. Experience has shown in all forms of retailing that buyer’s prefer to work with a price. If you aim is to attract lots of buyers then proudly promote a price. Your buyer activity will determine how close you are to a “perceived fair” point.