Almost half of the active listings in NSDCC have been on the market for more than two months. They have missed the ‘selling season’, and the sellers are now left wondering when/if that happy couple with 2.2 kids will come along.
Over the last two years we’ve been in a rapidly-appreciating market, and sellers only had to wait for prices to catch up. But now that prices have been fairly flat, the wait could last forever. It is a real possibility that this is will be the peak for the foreseeable future.
If you are patiently waiting for the ‘right buyer’ to come along, no problem. But for those sellers who want some real guidance about what it will take to get your home sold in the next few weeks, consider my pricing gauge:
Common-Sense Pricing Gauge:
A. If you are getting offers, then your list price is about right.
B. If you are getting lookers, but no offers, then your list price is about 5% to 10% too high.
C. If you don’t have any buyers looking at the home, the price is more than 10% wrong.
Buyers are addicted to the days-on-market statistic, which is out in the open. For every week your house is on the market, buyers are mentally subtracting about 1% from your original list price.
As a result, sellers should lower their price by 5% every 2-4 weeks until they start getting offers.
An exciting price creates urgency and enthusiasm among both buyers and agents. Without it, your listing goes stale quickly, usually after two weeks – and after that, many of the showings are for comparison to help agents sell the better-priced house down the street.
