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How to Price Your Highlands Ranch Home to Sell?

It's been said that a properly priced home is 75% sold. A properly priced home will typically sell quicker and for a higher price than an overpriced home. The time to price your home right is at the time your home is listed, not after it's too late and you lose marketing time.

The the correct way to price your home is to have an experienced Highlands Ranch agent compare your home to others that have recently sold.  Click here to find out what your home is worth in today's market.

It's important to be objective and realistic. Once you’ve set the price and your home is on the market, monitor feedback from the market to determine if you need to adjust the price.

The majority of market activity occurs in the first two to three weeks on the market. This is the worst time to overprice because this is the time that the best buyers will see your home.

Common misconceptions and reasons for overpricing:

Trying to get money back for improvements made
The misconception is that the cost of improvements equals what the market will pay for those improvements. Most improvements are made for the enjoyment of the homeowner. If you knew you were going to move before you made the improvements, would you still have made them?

Wanting excessive negotiating room
Your list price should fall within the average sales to original list price ratio of recent comparable sales.

Owners financial needs
There is no relationship between the amount of money a seller needs and current market value of a home.

Inaccurate information on current market conditions or selecting an agent who will list at the highest price
Some homeowners select the listing agent who will list their home at the highest price.  The agent you choose should try to get you the highest possible price but is doing you a great disservice by placing your home on the market above market value.  Some inexperienced agents will take an overpriced listing because they don't know any better.  Select your agent based upon experience, their marketing plan and the value provided.   Remember, the agent controls the marketing but not the market.

Assessed Value  
Assessors use special mass appraisal systems to determine market value and in many cases, the data used is historical.  Typically the Assessor's valuation is much different than actual market value.

The sale price of a home in the neighborhood that sold a year or two ago
The most relevant comparable sales are those that ocurred within 6 months prior to the time your home is listed for sale.

What a neighbor has their home listed for 
A homeowner can ask any price they wish. The best comparable properties used for determining value are not active listings but recent sales.

A value opinion from a prior refinance or home equity appraisal 
It seems logical that a recent appraisal value for the purpose of refinancing is equal to current market value. In some cases, a prior appraised value will be the same as current market value. Many times, this is not the case. An appraisal used for refinancing has a different purpose than marketing. In some cases there has been undue pressure placed on an appraiser by a mortgage broker to artificially inflate the value.

"I can always come down" or "I want to try it at the higher price for a couple of weeks" 
Many sellers think that they can price their home several thousand dollars above market value and just “see what happens". But what inevitably happens is that they miss they best period of buyer activity and best chance for the highest price during the first two to three weeks of the listing period. The question a buyer almost always asks is, "How long has this home been on the market?".

"The buyer can always make an offer" 
The only way a buyer can make an offer on your home is if they see it. The problem is, most qualified buyers will look up to their price range and just a little bit over, and then concentrate only in their price range. If your home is overpriced, the buyers who can afford your home will not see it. The buyers who can buy won't even look. Even if an uninformed buyer were to make an offer, the appraisal will not come in above market value.

What the owner paid  
The prior cost of the home has no relationship to its current market value.

If your home is overpriced, here is the order of events that you can expect:

• Agents, knowing your home is overpriced, will not show your home.

• Your home will sit on the market while others around yours are selling.

• Because of its lengthy time on the market buyers will suspect that there is something wrong with your home.

• You may begin to get anxious and lose patience.

• Because of your time restraints, you will reduce the price below the asking price of competing homes.

• Your property will then sell for a lower than market value.

• AAn owner who ignores proper pricing usually ends up getting less than fair value.

FREE DVD!
Call or contact us to have a free copy of "Pricing Your Home To Sell", by David Knox, a nationally recognized real estate speaker.

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