You can price your home in one of three ways. You can price it to sell quickly, eventually, or not at all. The first option appeals to most sellers, obviously. So let’s talk about how you would achieve it. How to Price Your Home to Sell Quickly * When selling a home, you have to change your mindset from “owner” to “seller.” In reality, you are both of these things. But you need to think more like a salesperson than a homeowner, especially when it comes to pricing. Adopt this mindset now, before you move any further into the home selling process.
* Here’s a little mantra to help you think like a salesperson. “It’s not personal. It’s business.” You should repeat this mantra as you determine your asking price, and when negotiating with buyers. The personal and emotional connection you have to your home does not translate into market value.
* There’s a possibility your home is worth less today than when you bought it. When the housing bubble burst a few years ago, it caused property values to drop in many cities across America. You might live in a city where home values have recovered since then. If so, count yourself lucky. But you might also live in a market where prices haven’t yet reached their pre-bubble peaks. So be prepared for this kind of harsh reality, in case it applies you.
* The market determines what your home is worth — you do not. If you price the property based on what you need to get from the sale (and this amount exceeds the true market value), you could be in for a long wait.
* The only way to sell an overpriced home is by finding a buyer who is willing to pay more than market value. Such buyers are few and far between. Buyers are more price-savvy than ever before, due to the housing crisis of the late 2000s. Nobody wants to buy into a negative-equity situation, and most lenders won’t even allow it. So price the home properly from the start.
* If you have a real estate agent, he or she will help immensely during this stage. Your agent will gather data from recent comparable sales in the area. This is what agents refer to as “comps,” and they are the key to your pricing strategy. If the buyer also has an agent (and most of them do), they will be looking at the same data. If you price yourself above the comps but have nothing to justify the increase, your home might be on the market for a long time.
* If you’re selling the home by yourself, you should have an appraisal done. Comparable sales are a good guide to pricing, but they only take the other houses into account. They don’t take into account any improvements you’ve made to your own house. A person has to do this — whether it’s a real estate agent or a professional home appraiser. As you can see, there is a lot of research involved in the pricing process. But it’s necessary research. If you skip it, you could end up overpricing the home. And that’s rarely the path to a quick sale.