HOW TO PRICE YOUR HOME TO SELL IN A BUYER’S MARKET

In today’s local Coeur d’Alene Real Estate and national marketplace there is a lot of emphasis on pricing a property. Here are a few simple tips on how best to price your home to stand out.

1. So many homes initially come on the market at a higher than market price. It is human nature to believe that what we have worked so hard to acquire, maintain and decorate will warrant a higher price for just the right buyer.  The unfortunate truth is property inventories are at an all time high.  The Coeur d’Alene market has roughly 3 to 4 times the number of homes for sale than were for sale in 2005. In other areas of the country inventories are much higher.  With the volume of homes on the market the ultimate purchase seems to resemble that of a commodity purchase rather than a unique asset. A home will gain its most exposure within the first 14 days of being listed. A large reason for this is the automated internet tools available to most buyers which automatically e-mails new listings to buyers that meet their parameters.  If that buyer, who is looking online (as 95% of them do) does not see a good value as compared to the others they have researched they may never put it on their list to preview.Recent MLS history show that that majority of homes that were initially priced high fall into a spiral of chasing the market downward over the years. In this situation Sellers often end up with a price much lower than they ever considered in the beginning – so a good rule is to be painfully aggressive up front to capture the most interest in the beginning.  It may save you more in the end. 
2. The old JC Penney pricing strategy is obsolete in today’s real estate market. In the Coeur d’Alene area I frequently notice properties being priced at $199,999, $349,900 or something similar.  Again keep in mind 95% of all real estate Buyers start their search online. Most online real estate search sites provide a drop down box or a Minimum & Maximum field for Buyers to input their parameters.  For instance what if the prospective buyer started their search at $200,000? The home priced at $199,999 would never show up in this buyer’s property search.Most drop down boxes adjust in $10,000 or $25,000 increments in the lower end; then as they get above $500,000 they may move in $50,000 to $100,000 increments. 
3. Using the same logic as outlined above. What would happen to that property priced at $201,900? The same applies but on the other end.  Often Seller’s have in mind a target price they would like to receive from the sale so we see a lot of homes come on the market with prices just above what one would expect in an online search.  Using this example what if a buyer was searching online up to $200,000?  Well they would never see the listing priced at $201,900. Same advice as above make sure you price your property at a point where you will gain the most exposure online. That means pricing your property at $200,000, $320,000, $550,000. This strategy will capture those who start or end their search at those price points.

The name of the game today is to cast as wide a net as possible to attract as many potential buyers. This is critically important considering the number of homes currently on the Coeur d’Alene area market and a reduced buyer pool.