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This is TERRIBLE advice because there ARE potential buyers out there. Serious one's too. If your house is not on the market IT WON'T sell.
If the sellers LOWERS his price aggressively, it will go back on the hot sheet, AND then the market will determine if its PRICED RIGHT.
LOL yeah sure there are buyers out there, serious ones even. Just not for the OP's house, apparently.
OP, it's time to cut the **** and get serious. Do you want to sell your home or not? If not, take it off the market. If you want to actually get it sold, it's obviously priced too high no matter what you think.
We've been on the market about 65 days, have had a steady amount of showings (but no offers), we are leading the pack in pricing and live in an area that isn't drastically affected by the housing bubble (Austin) My gut tells me to leave our house on the market thru the holidays when inventory is low, and people have fewer choices, but my brain is telling me that by Spring, when the mkt picks up, we will have been on the mkt for 130+ days, we will have a lot more competition and our listing will be stale. WWYD?
Thanks!
Austin real estate market statistics for November 2008 (http://www.realtyaustin.com/blog/news/november-15-2008-austin-real-estate-market-statistics/ - broken link)
When comparing Nov. 9 - Nov. 15, 2008 to the same week in 2007:
The number of New listings was down 23.55%,
The number of homes Pending sale was down 33.33%,
The number of homes Sold was down 58.38%,
Average sales prices increased 4.85% to $260,099. In 2007 it was $248,057 for the same week,
Listings increased 31.71% from 8,851 last year to Austin had 8,851 to 11,658 active listings.
When comparing October 2008 to October 2007:
The number New listings was down 22.55%,
The number of homes Pending sale was down 34.87%,
The number of homes Sold decreased by 26.24%,
The average price of new listings is up 6.30% while the average prices of homes that sold only increased 0.35%.
I have to respond. Twice my husbands job relocated us between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Both times we have had 5 days or less to find a home. There were so few on the market so we just took the best one that met our criteria. So many less buyers, but the buyers out there are the ones that have to buy. We are the people you want looking at your house!
I would take it off the market until Spring so it will be a new listing. You know that a house that's been on the market for 130 days will be prime for the "bargain hunters"... the low ball offers... Realtors will be showing your house with that in mind.
If I were you, I'd take it off the market until Spring. In the meantime, you can have a few months of sanity without showings. When you relist, it be a new listing.
We all hope that by then things are going to be in a better place... or at least heading that way!
BTW - If, in the meantime, your Realtor has someone who is serious and your house is a good match for them, they can always write up a contract and show the house to them. Any smart Realtor understands that in so doing they will be a dual agent and get both sides of the commission... so, if you tell them that you want them to show it like that -- they will!
I would take it off the market until Spring so it will be a new listing. You know that a house that's been on the market for 130 days will be prime for the "bargain hunters"... the low ball offers... Realtors will be showing your house with that in mind.
If I were you, I'd take it off the market until Spring. In the meantime, you can have a few months of sanity without showings. When you relist, it be a new listing.
We all hope that by then things are going to be in a better place... or at least heading that way!
BTW - If, in the meantime, your Realtor has someone who is serious and your house is a good match for them, they can always write up a contract and show the house to them. Any smart Realtor understands that in so doing they will be a dual agent and get both sides of the commission... so, if you tell them that you want them to show it like that -- they will!
There are less homes on the market and serious buyers. Here in the Northeast the weather has alot to do with it......lots of snow...less looking...bone chilling cold...even less. Less homes on the market usually translates to sellers getting a better price. Here we have not hit bottom yet and buyers are wary of that fact. Best estimates are that the bottom will come late winter early spring. This will be times with the re-entry into the market of sellers who withdrew for the winter selling season, sellers who think it will then go back up, and buyers now warm still looking for that same old bargain...........net result...here your home is likely to be worth less in the spring due to that decline, increased competition as number of homes on the market increases, and continued buyer bargain attitude. Once hitting bottom, the market will not automatically start up, the upward movement in value will vary significantly from area to area, and once starting up will only be adding back to 2003/03 value levels. Given that picture [though no one really knows] you should get agressive now or be prepared to sit tight for at least two years. Increased unit sales in this market usually means [though there are always area exceptions] that you are selling below previous value levels. Pull th house off for two weeks...freshen the listing w/ new photos, text and tour...then reenter
There are less homes on the market and serious buyers. Here in the Northeast the weather has alot to do with it......lots of snow...less looking...bone chilling cold...even less. Less homes on the market usually translates to sellers getting a better price. Here we have not hit bottom yet and buyers are wary of that fact. Best estimates are that the bottom will come late winter early spring. This will be times with the re-entry into the market of sellers who withdrew for the winter selling season, sellers who think it will then go back up, and buyers now warm still looking for that same old bargain...........net result...here your home is likely to be worth less in the spring due to that decline, increased competition as number of homes on the market increases, and continued buyer bargain attitude. Once hitting bottom, the market will not automatically start up, the upward movement in value will vary significantly from area to area, and once starting up will only be adding back to 2003/03 value levels. Given that picture [though no one really knows] you should get agressive now or be prepared to sit tight for at least two years. Increased unit sales in this market usually means [though there are always area exceptions] that you are selling below previous value levels. Pull th house off for two weeks...freshen the listing w/ new photos, text and tour...then reenter
You're probably right about how long it's going to take for the housing market to stabilize.
I'm not a Realtor but I've both bought and sold houses within the last year. Looking back, I'm so glad I sold when I did. I also know how concerned I was about buying in this market. As a Buyer, I didn't want to overpay.
You've brought up another important factor -- the markets are different in different areas of the United States. I don't know what the housing market is like in the OP's location.
Undoubtedly, if you really have to sell, then you must cut prices and do whatever it takes to sell. But, taking the house off the market for a few months will make a Seller look less desparate -- IMHO. And, as I said earlier, if her Realtor gets serious people that are right for the house while it's "off the market", they can write up a contract to show it to them.
As you said, less homes on the market may mean that Sellers can get a better price. But, a market glutted with foreclosures, desparate Sellers and houses that have been on the market for too many days makes for a Buyers Market. The house I purchased this year had been on the market for almost a year. In the end, it sold for 75% of the original asking price. (and, I may have still overpaid)
Last edited by World Citizen; 11-26-2008 at 08:15 AM..
There are less homes on the market and serious buyers. Here in the Northeast the weather has alot to do with it......lots of snow...less looking...bone chilling cold...even less. Less homes on the market usually translates to sellers getting a better price. Here we have not hit bottom yet and buyers are wary of that fact. Best estimates are that the bottom will come late winter early spring. This will be times with the re-entry into the market of sellers who withdrew for the winter selling season, sellers who think it will then go back up, and buyers now warm still looking for that same old bargain...........net result...here your home is likely to be worth less in the spring due to that decline, increased competition as number of homes on the market increases, and continued buyer bargain attitude. Once hitting bottom, the market will not automatically start up, the upward movement in value will vary significantly from area to area, and once starting up will only be adding back to 2003/03 value levels. Given that picture [though no one really knows] you should get agressive now or be prepared to sit tight for at least two years. Increased unit sales in this market usually means [though there are always area exceptions] that you are selling below previous value levels. Pull th house off for two weeks...freshen the listing w/ new photos, text and tour...then reenter
I think buyer bargain attitude is a HUGE factor coming into the Spring. I would price to sell. Cause I think more buyers will be out there in the Spring but they will probably ALL be expecting deals. Bloated inventories, more foreclosures, and more layoffs will all feed into it and housing will take a hit yet again.
Deflation will end up hitting everything including RE. There's a lot more going on than just a housing bust and that will impact prices as well.
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