We are in a buyer’s market in Calgary, and it’s been like that for awhile. This essentially means that there are more houses for sale than there are active buyers. When this happens a question you must ask yourself is, “Do you really want to sell?” Your home is no longer yours. It is a show home. You’ll be decluttering, cleaning, polishing, organizing, staging. As you work your tail off, remember this is not an experiment to see if your overpriced home will sell. This is real and everything that needs to be done, should be done to perfection. For example, if you noticed the closet door falling off, so will every person that views the home. What bugged you about the house, will bug them even more, because they have the money.
There comes a point, let’s call this point ‘crucial’ where a seller listens to every drop their experienced REALTOR® tells them. The seller will pay attention to all the data their REALTOR® provides, such as what is currently for sale in the community, and what comparable sold over the past year. When selling, a buyer’s market is not the time to shoot for the stars (not a good idea, the closest star is 4.24 light years away). If you absolutely need to move, you may consider being more aggressive in price.
Let’s say you are totally on track to sell and you price your home appropriately. It’s a little bit less than your competition in the neighbourhood. It is in the realm of possibility that it will sell when compared to other homes that have sold in the vicinity. Statistically and scientifically, this way of pricing should work. It should be getting regular showings. Open houses should be busy. An offer should come in sooner and for more money than if it been had priced it higher. If it sells right away, it’s not because it was priced too low, it’s because it was priced right.
Let’s say though, that the sellers know more than the REALTOR® and all the data provided. If within 14-21 days there has been no interest, this is a big problem. It may be too late. Buyers may think something is wrong with the home or it’s simply overpriced. The seller is upset and blames the REALTOR®, the REALTOR® is frustrated and disappointed with themselves, they knew they shouldn’t have taken the listing.
Most know that since 2014 we have seen a downward trend in sales and price. I’d be delighted to see that change, but it is the current reality. The other issue of over valuing a home is our declining market. If the buyer pays too much, they may not have enough equity to sell it in the future. Also to consider, if the bank does an appraisal on an accepted offer, will it appraise out lower? A lower appraisal may mean that a buyer is unable to secure a mortgage.
The average days on market in Calgary is 59. Realistically, if a seller priced right, the property should sell under that time period. Homes priced UNDER $500,000 had sales grow of 9%. Homes OVER $500,000 saw sales decline by 11% last year. Logic (and data) tells me that pricing a home at $499,900 over $509,900 will shorten days on the market and the sale to list price should increase.
You can successfully sell your home. Trust your REALTOR® and listen to their advice. Price it right. Prepare your home. Wait for an offer.
