Southern NH Real Estate Answers

Pricing your home too high.

The most common mistake that causes sellers to get less than they hope for is listing the sale price too high. Overpriced properties stay on the market, and most end up selling at a lower price than would have been realized had it been priced properly in the first place. This according to real estate expert Robert Jenson, founder and CEO of The Jenson Group.

To help give some guidance to would be sellers, Jenson offers some insights on the various elements that must be considered when establishing a fair, competitive and marketable sale price for a home.

-Square footage
-Location within community
-Views…or lack thereof
-Upgrades and features
-Community amenities
-Comparable sales
-Professional appraisal
-Current mortgage conditions

Jenson notes, "Listings reach the greatest proportion of potential buyers within the initial days and weeks after hitting the market. If a property is overpriced early on, it will be dismissed - or outright missed - by prospective buyers and may result in price reductions that will reflect poorly on the listing. Examine these 8 conditions as a means to determine the fair market value of your home."

"Understanding that most sellers have an emotional connection to their home and feel it deserves top dollar when being sold. Everyone naturally wants to get the most money for his or her product, but sellers must not be hasty with this all-important decision,” cautions Jenson, “Indeed, the most common mistake that causes sellers to get less than they hope for is listing the sale price too high."

MOTIVATED SELLER ?

People have been asking me lately: Suzanne, do I leave my house on the market through the holidays or do I take if off and re-list it in the spring? My response is: "Has your motivation changed?

If you are anxious to sell, then yes, keep it on the market. There will be less competition during the snowy months as other sellers less motivated than you will take their homes off . But homes always look and smell nice at Christmas-time too, so you will have additional appeal and buyers like to see wrapped packages in a nice property.

And there ARE buyers out there, many of whom will be honestly motivated to buy (the cold weather is just as tough on the buyers--meaning the lookers will stay home), and some buyers will have just been transferred to a new job in NH so they will be anxious. (Remember, many companies hire or transfer employees based on their annual budgets--and as the budgets often start with January, that's a good time to have your home on the market!)

Or, on the other hand, if you are not terribly motivated to sell, then remove the home from the market. This way you won't have folks tracking mud and snow through the house. It will be easier for you and your family not to have to keep the house cleaned up during the holidays. The house will appear to be a new listing when it comes back on in the Spring. But remember, there will be lots of houses coming back on in the Spring, so the competition will be strong at that time and given the economic prognosis for real estate, in order to sell, you will want to come back to the market with the lowest price in your category, which no doubt will be lower than it's asking price is now.