Pricing Homes in a challenging Market

I have been asked a lot about pricing lately by customers selling their home. Questions come up like, " Am I priced right?" In a declining real estate market, this is a tough question to answer and the choices that you make at this point can have significant results.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1) Are people looking at my home--both online as well as in person? We all know that real estate activity is down, but are you getting some showing each month.

2) Does the neighbors house for sale next door that is $50K less compare with my home (be honest with yourself here)

3) What is the final number that I need to get out of the sale? (Always have a draft HUD done so you can see what that number is)

First Rule of Thumb: Statistics can be twisted towards the positive and negative. I remind people that the buyers can find comparables that push a price down 10-15% to justify what they want.

Second Rule of Thumb: List Price does not equal Sales price...have some flexibility but be in the range. After a quick review of South Tampa condos(MLS area 208-217), I see in the MLS that for the last 6 months (147), condos sold at 94% of list price. So on the average list price for South Tampa condso $297,518 list price, you are really looking at $286,284. This done not include any additional concessions.

Third Rule of Thumb: Price yourself "in the range" Remember the average sales price is that, the average. Consider how you compare with other similar homes.

I consistenly like to review pricing on an individual basis and look for true comparables to see if we are "in the range" You dont need to be "the average" but you also dont need to be the most expensive.

Hope this helps,