You get home from work and settle into the living room. Your partner comes up to ask you about your day and runs through the neighborhood gossip. This time, one juicy nugget hits close to home.
“Did you see how much the house down the street sold for?
“Yeah, maybe we should put ours on the market?”
“How much do you think we could get for it?”
We’re here to help you find the answer to that question.
There’s no playbook to pricing your home as you get ready to sell. We can evaluate the square footage, patio size, and number of bedrooms and bathrooms to get a rough estimate, but the market also has a say in the price.
That’s why it’s important to get a real estate team together in your corner to evaluate the current condition of your home and work with you to come up with a price that meets your goals and aspirations.
And to give you more confidence when determining the right price, we’ve put together this list of what to know to price your home with confidence.
So when you sit down with your realtor to determine the ideal price for your home, you can rest assured that you’ve done all the proper work and research to list with authority.
Find the Approximate Value Range
First things first. Establish a range with your realtor on the value of your home.
You can start with a simple calculation through the Federal Housing Finance Agency before meeting with an agent for an in-depth consultation.
After a consultation, let’s say you determine your home is worth $700K. This gives you a range with which to work, anywhere from $670K to $730K, depending on the market conditions in your area.
In a hot selling market, we can expect your home to reach that upper limit after multiple offers. But in a more stagnant time frame, we may only get a few offers in the lower range. That is why it’s important to settle on this range with a realtor you trust and set those expectations right from the get go.
That way, as the sales process moves along, we know what to expect both from our realtor and potential buyers.
Search Friendly Price
When new buyers begin working with an agent, they’ll typically give them parameters for their search, such as the number of bedrooms they want or a renovated kitchen. The final parameter will be the price of the home.
If a family has a budget of $600K, homes that are listed at $620K won’t show up in their searches. Before settling on a final price, we need to keep the searchability of our price in mind. Selling a home can be a major numbers game, and we want to cast as wide of a net as possible with potential buyers.
An experienced, knowledgeable real estate agent will work with you on a price that captures the most attention possible while still reaching your financial goals.
Don’t “Stand Out” with Your Price
You’ve finally settled on the right “range” for the value of your home, so why not have a little fun with it and have it stand out?
Something like $722,727?
You’re right. The price for your home now stands out. But not for the right reasons.
A unique price such as this raises immediate questions from potential buyers about the seller of the home.
Why did they list it at that price? Is there something wrong with the home? What are the sellers like? Will they be more difficult to work with?
And all of a sudden we have a buyer that becomes curious, or maybe even skeptical, of the seller.
We want the seller in a real estate transaction to be as much in the background as possible. That’s why we ask folks who want to sell their home to remove personal photos from the home prior to listing.
The property needs to be the focal point. We want buyers to envision themselves in the home. Not to picture the sellers and what they’ve done with the house to this point.
Make sure you stand out for the right reasons when it comes to selling your home.
Always an Ongoing Discussion
Even when you work with your agent to determine a good listing price, you need to remain flexible to the changing market conditions.
As you can see, many factors come into play when determining the right price for your home, which is why you need to keep an ongoing discussion with your realtor. Be flexible and well positioned to adapt with the market.
No matter if inflation continues to rise, or interest rates fluctuate, you’ll be in control of the financial process regarding your home.
Study the Comparables
With the homes that are selling in your area, what do they have in common?
Phenomenal staging? Updated bathrooms? Fresh coats of paint?
Take stock of homes that are still on the market. Where can you find reasons why their market might be stagnant?
Too high of a price for too many improvements? Not in the best neighborhood?
The more you understand the local market around you, the more confident you’ll be in setting the right price for your home. Gauging the area gives you a realistic look into what you can expect for your home, while also noticing where you might need to make improvements in order to compete with homes selling quickly.
Learn All About Home Inspections
An integral part of any home selling process, a home inspection will quickly point out any trouble points for buyers when it comes to the condition of your home.
Be on the lookout for bulging hoses in washing hoses, or moisture collecting near air ducts in bathrooms, as these things could be major red flags that can drive your list price down if not addressed.
If you catch these problems early on before putting your home on the market, you’ll save yourself money and stress when negotiating with buyers down the road. Plus, you’ll instill confidence in those buyers because of the improved condition of the home in general.
Recap
When determining whether or not to list your home, your mind can fill with streams of endless questions. Use this guide to give you the conviction you need to navigate pricing your home in a competitive market.
And if you still need some more information on best practices to sell your home, be sure to attend our FREE Home Seller Seminar coming up soon! We’d be happy to help you any time with your real estate questions and aspirations.
