Omaha Real Estate & Omaha Homes for Sale - The Trumm Team

One of the most important factors, if not the key factor, for a quick home sale is proper pricing. Price your home too high and you'll generate very little to no interest. Price your home below what buyers are willing to pay and the final sale price might be much less than what you could have made if the home had been properly priced from the onset.

When deciding upon a listing price, your Realtor® can advise you in making this very important decision. An experienced Realtor® will look at two primary factors when coming up with a range to price your home. These are sales in the area and market conditions.

1. Sales in the Area

Realtors® are able to research what homes have sold in your area along with their list prices and final sales prices. This research gives them an idea of what buyers might be willing to pay for your property. These statistics will not only show sales price but also how long each home was on the market before it sold, square footage and features of each home.

Your Realtor® will compare your home to others that have like features, including those with similar updates and homes that are of comparable square footage.

•¨ Comparable Homes

The first thing that must be done is establish which homes are comparable to yours. To do this your Realtors® will review the homes that have sold in your subdivision. For example if you live in Millard Heights it would not be reasonable to compare your home to Millard Highlands. Even the though the two subdivisions are close together they include homes of entirely different styles, sizes, and quality. From there the homes will be narrowed down by the type of floor plan (split entry, tri-level, etc.). Then filtering the homes based on the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, garage spaces, and square footage will yield the most comparable properties.

•¨ Comparable Condition and Features

When looking at the pricing on homes which are your direct competition, it is important to make sure your home is compared to others with similar features. For older homes it is important to examine the condition and updates of the subject property in comparison to surrounding properties. In some areas of Omaha, such as Country Club and Dundee, there are many homes that have been completely updated while others have not changed since they were built. Features are also important to scrutinize. In Regency many homes have in-ground pools. Obviously it would not be good judgment to establish the price of a home without a pool by looking at the price of a home with a pool.

•¨ Price Per Square Footage

The price per square footage is determined by taking the asking price and then dividing the price per the total square footage of the home. This calculation will result in a number which a Realtor® can compare to neighborhood sales. This final number is compared to other homes that have recently sold in the area, giving you and the Realtor® a certain amount of confidence that this price per square foot is a reasonable number.

2. Market Conditions

Are you living in a hot real estate market? Or are you living in an area where sales are slow? Market conditions are affected by unemployment and the overall economy. Even within a neighborhood the market is affected by the number of foreclosures in the subdivision, the number of rental properties, and local businesses. For example with the development of the Aksarben business district homes in the area have been in demand despite the slow overall market. Depending on your area's market conditions, you may be able to list your home for more than you think in a hot market. You may also need to list the house a bit lower than your expectations in a slow market, especially if you want to make a quick sale.

The importance of properly pricing your home cannot be underestimated. This is the time when the expertise and industry resources of a Realtor® are invaluable. If you have found a Realtor® that you trust, trust also that they know the market, together you can formulate a fair price that will get your house sold as soon as possible.

Troy Trumm - Alliance Real Estate, Omaha, NE

The Trumm Team

Homes For Sale in Omaha

Consumer Reports on Omaha Real Estate

Here's another typical scenario of what happens with an over-priced listing. I met with some sellers that had previously listed their home with a part-time agent that was a friend of theirs. It had been priced at $199k but never sold. I went over everything that I do and they were impressed with everything I offered. I suggested a list price of 180k but let them know that if we don't get any showings or if the feedback we get is that that the price is too high, then we would have to lower it. After three weeks on the market we had not had a single showing. I re-evaluated the situation and recommended lowering the price to 175k. At this point they cancelled the listing, convinced that they needed a better agent. I watched their listing once it was relisted with another agent. It was priced at 180k for 3 weeks and then dropped to 175k and shortly thereafter went pending.

The lessons to learn:

1. Even the best marketing plan can't sell an overpriced home.

2. Sellers will say they understand that the price needs to be reduced in the beginning, but when it comes time to actually make the price change they'll often try to shift blame to justify keeping the price where it's at.

Trumm Team - Alliance Real Estate, Omaha, NE

Omaha Homes Currently Represented

I met with a seller who had previously been listed with another agent. The home had been priced at 125k and the CMA showed it should be listed at 115k. Despite explaining why the home was only worth 115k, she stilled wanted to list it at 125k because she was convinced that the last agent was completely ineffective and it wasn't the price that prevented it from selling. So I took the listing at 125k, letting her know that the price would have to come down. The house would sit for 4 to 6 weeks without a single showing and I would tell her we needed to drop the price. The feedback from the few showings that we did get was that it was over priced and I would let her know that we needed to drop the price. Gradually she lowered the price - 1k here, 2k there. After five and a half months, we were still at 118k and she asked me ‘what do we need to do to get rid off it?' I told her we needed to price it at 115k. She says to put it at 112k. Within 4 days we have 2 offers and it sells for 114.5k

The two lessons I have from this story are

1. Price it right to begin with, and

2. Some sellers have to experience the pain of having their home on the market for an extended period of time before they will accept what their home is worth.

Trumm Team - Alliance Real Estate, Omaha, NE

Omaha Homes Currently Represented

I want to thank Mary Rae Wolf of CBSHome. Today the sale of my listing at 1752 S. 9th St. in Kountze Addition of South Omaha closed. It sold in only seven days. Selling a home takes not just comprehensive marketing and outstanding service but also a capable agent on the other side of the transaction. Mary Rae represented the buyer and she did an excellent job. She was a pleasure to work with and I look forward to doing business with her again.

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Omaha Homes For Sale

Trumm Team - Alliance Real Estate, Omaha, NE

I want to thank Wayne Plowman of Charleston Homes of Omaha for taking the time to meet with me to discuss how my services can benefit his clients. Specifically we discussed how my Guaranteed Sale program will benefit clients that want to build a new home with Charleston Homes but need to sell their current home first. My Guaranteed Sale program solves that problem - if I cannot sell their home in 120 days, then I will buy it so that they can purchase their next home.

Trumm Team - Alliance Real Estate, Omaha, NE