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Hey Bill, I agree with yours and MAM's posts, and for that matter, many of the others in this thread. I'm just curious, though. When I suggested some time back that my price was warranted based on all the things you just mentioned, I was told by some of these same folks that that didn't matter. All that mattered was the most recent sold comp. Price was the only thing that mattered. Am I hearing now that that isn't the case, or am I misunderstanding?
Most of them use current tax records as their basis. It's ok to see the trend of up or down, but it doesn't mean anything if nobody wants to buy your house at any price.
I live in a neighborhood where houses on one side of the street are 3-400K and houses on the other side are 800-1000K because they are lake front. The price goes up or down depending on which side of the street the comps are on.
Zillow actually has their accuracy stats on their website.
None of these are accurate. Most take public records and records people post to determine pricing. Their records are not updated. Often the square footage and other home features are very wrong.
The best way to get the value of the home is to hire an appraiser to appraise the property.
Real estate pros can do a comparative market analyse for you and normally don't charge and if they are good at their jobs they are close to the appraised value.
Another suggestion is to go to the public records in your area and see what has sold. Listings don't reflect market price but list price. Active listings have not sold. Pending listings indicate the price that got an offer but you won't know the sales price until the property actually sells.
Reviewing sales data is the best way to determine the value of the home. In the end, it's the buyer that sets that value of property.
Most agents do not discourage listing higher than the recommended price How do I know that? Just by looking at the length of time on market for many homes! I recently saw a home on the market for 949 days. Same agent and price. Perhaps in time that home will sell or someone with just give up! But the house is at least 50% overpriced according to sales in the area.
I often hear sellers tell me "Agent X said they'd list at $$$$$$$." Sure "list" but will is sell for that price? You can list or ask any price for your home. That does not mean a buyer will acutally pay that price. Overpricing just delays the sale or stops the sale since so many just overlook that price for the area. Look at the sold values for like property in that area to set the price. You'll sell more quickly and with a lot less frustration.
I was looking at what has sold and closed in the last 30 days in my little area (a downtown metro area). Of the transactions, many were in the 150-200 DOM range. One was at 237 days and sold and closed for ask. I am not sure if buyers were waiting to see if the price would be lowered or if sellers just didn't care to sell and waited to see if a buyer would come along and pay their price.
All I do know is for every rule there is an exception. If you've done your homework and priced your house at a reasonable price that you're willing to live with and it doesn't sell right away that does not mean you're wrong. There are many buyers waiting it out, just as there are many sellers waiting it out. So we all wait. And wait. And wait.
I am in one of those situations where the unit across the hall sold for 250k less than mine is listed. I have a water view, they look right into the neighbor across the street's living room window. I am quite sure if I used that as my "comp," I'd have buyers coming out of the woodwork. Not a chance!
So I wait.
If I'm on the market 237 days and get my ask price, I'm still gonna be happy.
I added a line to my net sheet ____________ holding costs.
I add PITIH for 2 months passed the average time on market.
When some sellers see on paper that they spend $3,000 a month - and they want top dollar, but that will take 5 months - OR they could move next month and save themselves $12,000....
When you calculate carrying costs, though, you can't just subtract $3,000/mo b/c that's their payment. They have to live somewhere, right? So if my payment is $3,000/mo, and what I'd rent for is $2,000/mo, then you can only deduct $1,000/mo for carrying that property. So suddenly your five months to break even is a lot longer.
In a survey conducted by Zillow.com last October, 49 percent of homeowners thought their own home's value has increased or stayed the same over the past year, even though 74 percent have lost value.
Hey Bill, I agree with yours and MAM's posts, and for that matter, many of the others in this thread. I'm just curious, though. When I suggested some time back that my price was warranted based on all the things you just mentioned, I was told by some of these same folks that that didn't matter. All that mattered was the most recent sold comp. Price was the only thing that mattered. Am I hearing now that that isn't the case, or am I misunderstanding?
It's all in the definition of a "comp." If your house is the same vintage, style & size as the last one to sell, but has not been updated as recently, or has lower quality and less desirable finishes, some will say that's not truly a comp, while others will say it's a good basic comp that then needs to be adjusted for those factors.
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