Our listings, when priced correctly, usually sell within 30 days or less, but there is nothing wrong with adjusting your price, as it pushes you (the home seller) right up to the top of the search field. What used to be considered a negative can now get more eyes on your property when not selling, and help to achieve successful results for all.
What used to be considered a negative, a price reduction or, as I like to say, “price improvement,” can be the secret sauce to a successful sale. There are a few key takeaways to make this plan work. The days of adjusting a price by $10,000 or even $25,000 are long gone. If a home is not selling in most price ranges above the million-dollar mark, a $50,000 or even $100,000 adjustment is usually needed to “move the needle” towards a successful sale. Most buyers spend more than they’d like to when purchasing a home. I have never in my 30+ years of real estate heard of a buyer who was looking for a home for $1,200,000 and found one for $1,000,000. It’s always the opposite. IF your house is not priced right, it will not be seen by the right buyers, and as they inch up the pricing ladder, they are likely to find another more appropriately priced property to buy before they see yours.
The key to pricing is also timing. If your home is not selling the time to adjust the price is in the three- to four-week marketing window at the latest. Once a property has been on the market for much longer that thirty to forty five days, the question every buyer asks is: “What’s wrong with this place?” Usually the answer is very simple. It’s overpriced!
Another key is to rearrange the listing photos so the first or second photo is not recognizable to the ever-scrolling public or agents. Mix it up by rearranging photos or, if necessary, getting some new, improved photography, perhaps showcasing the view or the home at dusk as the sun sets in the sky. The idea is to make the house present differently and look like a new choice for a potential buyer.
The key to a successful sale has always been price and condition, but any property will sell in any condition at the right price. Today, more than ever, in this more balanced market, price is the key to your successful sale in any price range.
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Andrew Manning • REALTOR® • Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties • DRE: 00941825 • 818-380-2147 • andrew@andrewmanning.com