You Have to Price Your Home Correctly, Even in a Seller’s Market

By in Sellers with 0 Comments
Published on February 20, 2020 / Last updated on January 17, 2021

In a seller’s market like the one we have now in the Tri-Cities, homeowners are sometimes tempted to think they can squeeze an extra $5,000 – $10,000 (or more) out of their home when they put it up for sale.

That’s a mistake. That’s not how it works.

What I think is happening in a situation like that is that the seller is assuming that appreciating home values also gives them the freedom to overprice their home. Some home owners justify overpricing their home by telling themselves (and their Realtor!) something like “we can always lower the price later” or “we need some wiggle room.”

But the reality is that a house is always worth what a house is worth regardless of the market that’s surrounding it, whether it’s a seller’s market or a buyer’s market. In other words, if your home is worth $300,000, you shouldn’t list it for $310,000 just because we’re in a seller’s market.

If you do, chances are strong that your home will sit on the market, unsold, for longer than similar homes. Buyers will start to wonder what’s wrong with it — why hasn’t it sold? They’ll assume something’s wrong with your home, when really the house is fine … you just priced it too high.

A Better Way To Price Your Home

Instead of overpricing, I’m a believer in pricing a home exactly at what it’s worth — and sometimes even a little less, especially if my seller is in a hurry to sell.

Pricing your home at or slightly below market value will

  • increase its visibility with buyers who can afford and would want to buy the home
  • create a sense of “this home is a great deal” when potential buyers find it online
  • get more buyers to want to see the home in person
  • increase the chances that you’ll end up on the receiving end of a bidding war with multiple offers

When you price your home correctly or even a little under market value, more potential buyers will want to see it up close — we all like getting a deal, right? They’ll be more excited about the home and more likely to make an offer — and one or more of them might even be for above your asking price.

How’s that for a win-win seller situation?

Key Takeaways

Even when inventory is tight like it is now in the Tri-Cities, you still have to price your home according to its market value. You don’t get to overprice your home just because we’re in a seller’s market.

If you price it correctly — at or even slightly below market value — you’ll get more buyers excited about the home and increase your chances of creating a multiple-offer situation with offers above your asking price.

And remember, don’t rely on computer-generated estimates to determine what your home is worth; Tri-Cities Zestimates are notoriously wrong. If you’re thinking about selling, get in touch anytime and we’ll provide you with a professional home value estimate at no cost to you, and with no obligation to hire us to sell your home.

Get in touch with Cari's team!

Have a question about the Tri-Cities? About the process of buying or selling a house? Get in touch with us below -- name and email are required so we can respond. Please provide your phone number if you'd prefer a call or text message in return.

  • We share Tri-Cities news, real estate tips and local market stats and much more. It's free and you can easily unsubscribe at any time.
  • You'll get new listings sent to your inbox up to a day before the general public sees them. It's free and there's no obligation.

(Photo by NeONBRAND on Unsplash)
Share This
About The Author
Cari McGee

My husband and I came to the Tri-Cities in 1994, and we thought it would be a temporary stop on our way to larger cities. He was a television sports anchor at the time, and we planned to go wherever the "next step up" took us. Twenty-plus years later, we're still here and we've loved every minute of it! We have two children now, and we've found the Tri-Cities area is a wonderful place to raise a family. It's a great place to do outdoorsy things -- I like to hike Badger Mountain or run along the river path. I also love reading ... by a cozy fire in the winter or a beautiful picture window in the summer (with the A/C on!). I've been a licensed Realtor since 2004. I earned my managing broker's license in 2016, which means I can run my own brokerage, or create a team of real estate agents and supervise them, which is exactly what I did when I formed the Cari McGee Real Estate Team in 2018! We have administrative and marketing personnel, as well as additional agents to serve you. I became a director of the Tri-Cities Association of Realtors Board of Directors in 2016, became Secretary/Treasurer of the organization, and was elected to Vice President in 2019. Want to talk about real estate? Click here to schedule a meeting with me!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *