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Eve Meyerson, ABR
Broker/SalesAssociate
Century 21Schilare Realty
1LincolnAve
Rutherford,NJ 07070
201.372.0500x245
201.993.5072cell
www.Ask4Eve.com
Ask4Eve@gmail.com
Sellers -- It's All About Price! Price! Price!
Even before www.Zillow.com published a new study about the perception that homeowners in the Northeast are still overpriced, it was clear from buyer behavior that buyers are either holding back from making offers or writing contracts as much as 20-25% below asking price.
Of course, those buyers consistently making exceptionally low bids and not negotiating upwards are finding that they not successful in securing a contract. Understandably.
Then there are the buyers who play the "waiting" game -- they like a property and put it on their short list of favorites and then wait. They wait for the price to be reduced. Even when the property is reduced, the buyers take notice and wait. And wait some more.
"It has to be reduced more -- it's still overpriced." It is a refrain I (and many other agents) hear again and again. These buyers are not concerned if a particular property goes under contract -- there is so much more out there to choose from!
However, many sellers are still unrealistic about the shift in the real estate market. With an over abundance of inventory (properties on the market), the power to make deals is in the hands of buyers.
Sellers need to look at the 2008-2009 market and forget what they might have made if they sold two to four years ago.
That market is over and unlikely to return for at least 10 years even after this current economic uncertainty is sorted out and stabilized. How long are you willing to wait?
Banks and lenders are returning to the old formula for approving loans -- good down payments and a monthly mortgage that roughly is not greater 30% of the borrower's gross monthly income.
Sellers take note: the buyers out there are more qualified with solid down payments then they were a few years ago.
And they are more informed then they were a few years ago.
Sellers are now competing with many other sellers in a shrinking economy (less discretionary dollars, a greater per cent age of income being funneled to "necessities" like food, gas, utilities, etc.).
And sellers have to understand that they are competing against all the free and easily available information through the internet. Sellers are also competing against all the short sales and foreclosures for sale.
Most buyers have done considerable research on the internet before they ever contact an agent. The buyers know the short and long term economic outlook, they know the past sales history of the type of home they are interested in, and they even look at a town's and county's stats on the per cent differential of sale price to asking price.
Sellers need to price their properties where they should be, not where they want it to be. The price the properties should be is no higher than the average of sold comparative properties in the last six months or so.
And be prepared to NEGOTIATE!, NEGOTIATE!, NEGOTIATE!
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**Contact me with your questions about short sales and foreclosures.
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