Some realtors don't want to speak openly about the elephant in the room, hoping it'll just go away but ultimately, the truth will out itself. The truth is that you can only manipulate the numbers and figures for so long before they bottleneck into one huge mess. And that mess translates into "buyer reluctance".
Buyer's are smarter and more savvy than some realtors and sellers think. Pending sales are down because of several important factors: uncertainty over economy, interest rates remain much higher than they should be considering where the Federal Reserve has set its own rate, and a real estate environment across the country that continues to act as though it's a sellers market.
News flash to obstinate sellers and those realtors that think you can still get buyers to pay more than the homes worth or push an appraisal upward to the maximum value-BUYER'S AIN'T BUYING! Now is the time for a new strategy and hard choices. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it, number one question a seller needs to ask themselves keeping in mind how serious they are about selling: Do I want to still own this property 3, 6, 9 months from now?
If the answer is no, then I suggest you do three things:
Set the price correctly. For those that are unsure what that price should be even after obtaining a comparative analysis, that is the price just under your strongest competing property in the neighborhood. The home that offers buyers the same style, amenities, condition and age as your property. Probably a good rule of thumb is to lower your asking price by 3% of the market value and a couple hundred dollars lower than your competition.
Another thing about price that is important to those sellers facing foreclosure; never hold firmly to a price, even at market value that fails to lure buyers. You need a quick out and that means "by any means necessary". Example and true story, I had a client wanting to move into a certain high dollar area within Oklahoma City and we found a home that was perfect. The lender had already recieved judgement on the seller and was entering the final phase of the foreclosure. My client had just enough to cover the sellers loan and offered to do a "short sale" through the lender. The seller could have walked away with clean credit and no foreclosure. Instead, the seller held firm to the asking price believing he had time enough to find a full price offer and walk away with some equity. What ended up happening was that the bank took the property. The seller now has a foreclosure on record and my client moved on to another property.
Let me repeat again: Never insist on receiving "full price" offers if a buyer brings you an offer within 90-95% of your asking price.
Never insist on selling "as-is" if there is enough equity built into the sell that you'll only be giving up $3 or $4,000 in repairs (assuming that your home needs that much repair work).
Never tell the buyer no when it comes to making concessions on closing costs. There is always a way to create a "win-win" situation between you and the buyer.
Bottom line: Stubborness will insure that you still own a house you no longer want or need.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
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