Several months ago I mentioned that a friend of mine had listed a mobile home in one of the better subdivisons in the Zephyrhills, Florida area. However, there were a few issues that could have been seen as negatives. The home was older, it was in an area that had flooded during the hurricanes of a few years ago, and it was on a busy street.
The agent had initially told the owner that the price should be just under $70,000. However, the seller insisted that she wanted it at $74,900 so when offers came in she could have some room to negotiate. The problem was, no offers came in. If the home had been under the 70K benchmark, she may have received the offers she wanted. She told the agent that she would accept an offer of $68,000, yet she refused to lower her asking price. And that was the problem. When people saw $74,900 on the home, they just stayed away in droves. For a year she left the price where it was. Finally my colleague gave up spending time and money on a person who was not willing to accept reality.
Last week another company placed their sign on the property. It is now IN FORECLOSURE and has a price of only $50,000 on it! The former owner is going to lose ALL of her equity in the home and will receive nothing. All because she would not listen to reason and had insisted that she knew more than her REALTOR and the buyers. In all probability, she could have sold it much earlier and made a small profit.
For two years now, I have walked away from listings that were unrealistic, sometimes 200% over what similar homes are selling for. If I had accepted them, down the road the sellers would have been angry with me when no people showed interest in the property. In the end they would probably have blamed me and then gone with another agent. Completely denying that they themselves had killed any possibility of a deal by putting their price at an unrealistic level.
When I turn down a listing, often, somewhere down the road, the owners call me asking for my assistance, realizing that I was being honest and ethical with them when I told them what their home should be priced at. The first agent who took the overpiced listing was now on the sellers' black list and was being blamed for the lack of interest in the property. As I mentioned, that is why I refuse to take on incorrectly priced homes.
With inventory still very plentiful out there, buyers have many homes to choose from and sellers have lots of competition. This does not mean you have to "give your home away" but it does mean you had better make sure the price is right. Listen to what your REALTOR tells you and go over the information that he or she has prepared to show you the comparable sold properties in your area. Active listings nearby are of minimal use. Solds are the key.
So learn from the little old lady in Zephyrhills. Use a good agent, listen to him or her, follow common sense, and price your home correctly. Even in this recession homes are selling. I sold three this month alone. But you need to make them attractive to buyers via the condition and price of the property. If you do this, it will sell!
If you would like to discuss this topic in general, or as it may pertain to your own situation, do not hesitate to call me at: 813-783-4444 or e-mail me at: jelwell1@tampabay.rr.com You may also enjoy visiting my webpage at: www.jelwell.century21bnr.com where you will find a lot of useful information concerning the real estate market in Zephyrhills, Florida and Pasco County.
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