Successful Price Positioning

Few people have realized that less than 45% of Palisades home owners are actually succeeding in selling their homes in the current market. Therefore, it is essential to first decide how important selling the home is before putting on the market. The two questions most often asked of real estate agents, how much will my house sell for and how long might it take, will in large part depend on the level of intent to sell.

There are four critical factors that generally determine why a home does or does not sell: how effectively it is priced and marketed, the professional experience of the agent, access for showing, and the showing condition.

Some sellers are just experimenting or testing the market, others are more motivated, and there are those who are very motivated. The latter group are the ones who have the best chance of succeeding. It may take three to four months on average in the current market for the home to sell given realistic pricing, adequate access, well staged showing condition and excellent marketing.

This is a time when it is not wise to price the home to test the market. Conventional pricing strategies involve looking in the “rear view mirror” to see where the market has been. Agents who have been through both up and down markets have learned by experience how important it is to always price ahead of the market, whether it is moving up or moving down at that time. The maximum energy in the sales process will be obtained by setting the price approximately 2-5% ahead of where the market is and in the direction it is trending.

Recently, the listing price of a property was adjusted ahead of the current downward-trending market as advised. Within a week, five offers were received. This validates that there are buyers who are willing to step up when the perceived value of a property is in line with the reality of today’s market.

Owners who are serious about selling need to meet with a seasoned professional agent who will help guide them to a realistic and appropriate positioning for success – both in terms of pricing as well as staging how the home can best be presented for maximum receptivity. Based on the studied opinions of most experts in the field of real estate and economics, it appears that it easily could be many years before the market highs of 2006-2007 are once again attained.

For the past 24 years Michael Edlen has provided real estate counseling services to prospective buyers and sellers. More tips and information are available on MichaelEdlen.com. He can be reached at 310.230.7373 or Michael@MichaelEdlen.com.