In an ideal world, your initial list price will get buyers in the door and will lead to lots of offers. In reality, that isn’t always the case. If your home has been on the market for a few weeks and no one is biting, it could be the price that’s keeping people away. Follow this advice to learn how to adjust your list price to increase interest, showing and offers.
- It’s Better to Price a Bit Low Than a Bit High:
When negotiating, it’s often best to start high and work your way down. For example, if you’re negotiating salary, you wouldn’t state your lowest acceptable salary amount first, as you might end up receiving less than it. The opposite is true when pricing your home. It’s better to underprice your home than to overprice it. If a home has a high price tag, buyers are less likely to make an offer on it, so overpriced homes sit on the market for longer. When they do sell, they usually sell for less than homes that had a lower price tag to begin with. But before you determine what’s low or high, make sure you understand what current market conditions demand. - Know the Pricing Cut-Offs:
If you priced your home too high the first time around and are in the process of reducing its price to either market value or just below market value, pay attention to the price thresholds available on listing sites. Many buyers come into the home buying process with a set budget, like under $350,000, under $400,000 and so on. If the market value of your home is $352,000 and you price it at that amount, buyers who are able to afford a $350,000 house won’t get a chance to look at your property. You’ll get more attention from buyers if you shave a few thousand off the price and re-list it at $349,000 instead. - Keep an Eye on the Market:
If you’re going to change the price of your home, it’s worth it to pay attention to what’s going on in the housing market around you, as it’s always changing as people buy homes and others put their property up for sale. For example, when you first listed your home at $375,000, there was a similar property for sale for $380,000, another for $395,000 and a few more listed at $365,000.Let’s say that over the course of a few weeks, both the $395,000 and the $380,000 homes sold, the $365,000 properties are still on the market and there are now a couple of $350,000 properties available. In that short amount of time, your home has gone from being in the middle of the pricing range to being at the very top. If your home hasn’t moved, it may be time to re-evaluate the market and adjust your price accordingly so you’re in the middle of the pack, not the highest-priced option.
- Switch Your Home’s Main Listing Photo When you Update the Price:
Changing the price of your home can attract buyers who skipped over it initially. To get their attention, it can be helpful to also change the main picture you use on listing sites. People will see the new photo, think “I haven’t seen this house before,” and will be more likely to click through and learn more about your home.
Pricing your home fairly will always attract more attention from buyers than trying to maximize price. Follow these guidelines to make sure you cater to the market and your buyer’s expectations to get a better return at closing.