Buyer's, Seller's and Lister's

Buyer's often ask the question "What should I offer?" before they find a specific house that they want to place an offer on. They want to know the formula for the list price verses the actual purchase price that they will pay. They ask questions like "If we shop in the $400,000 range, what price do you think we can get it for?" I always respond the same. It depends on the house and if it is priced correctly. How long has the house been on the market at this price? This is a more important question than, "How long has the house been on the market?"

Home owners don't have to price their home correctly, they just won't sell their house until they do. Maybe we should just call them Lister's. Unlike seller's, Lister's waste an agents time and inflate the price's of other Lister's.

Question's that I ask a home owner that says they want to sell is "Do you want to list your home, or sell it?" Do you want to be a lister or a seller? When do you want me to start telling you the truth?

Once I have explained to a buyer that selling prices are set by the market and not the sellers or their agent, I will let them know that sellers and their agents will list property (incorrectly) based upon other criteria. They will list based upon the debt on the property, what they paid, the improvements that they have done, the amount that their neighbor (a lister) has listed at, what they need or want to have to be able to fulfill their future plans etc. This is a mistake that will cost the Lister's money in the long run, if they ever sell.

Keep in mind that a lister is in charge of what price they will ask, but the buyer will decide how much the house will sell for. Lister's are different than seller's, because they don't need to sell.

We have a lot of Lister's in our current market. With 1207 homes on the market and only 51 closings in June, it appears that we have about 4% sellers and 96% Lister's.

One thing is for sure, you can sell your house if you are willing to price it correctly.

So, back to the question, "What should I offer?"

Once you have found that house you want to buy, the question really is, what is the current market value?

• Spend time looking at homes in the area that you want to buy.
• Have your agent show you recent comparable sales.
• Be reasonable based upon the information that you have collected.
• Ask your agent their opinion.
• Have your agent contact the seller/Lister's agent to see if there has been any activity previously that will help understand the seller's motivation.

Some good numbers to know in Big Bear

Year to date sales prices vs. list price / price differential.

Area Percentage #of sales

Big Bear Lake (West , Central and East) 80.58% 56

Moonridge 93.47% 61

Fox Farm 76.16% 25

Sugarloaf 92.27% 44

Fawnskin 92.38% 8

Big Bear City 97.11% 55

Erwin Lake 91.45% 26

Whispering Forest 94.85% 1

Baldwin Lake 96.39% 4