Sometimes homeowners stop talking to me at all after I recommend a listing price for their home because they would rather work with an agent who has a higher price recommendation. Real estate agents know this and some will give you that higher price every time.
The good news is there are a lot of real estate agents and several that can and will do a great job selling your home . . . once it is priced right.
The value a real estate agent gives you is just a recommendation and it is based on data and facts and in all cases a homeowner should be able to ask whatever they want to for their home. Pricing a home is more of an art than a science and yes it takes experience and I don’t know anyone who always gets it right every time.
A great strategy for real estate agents is to tell the homeowners what they want to hear and then work on a price reduction after the home is on the market.
The problem with that strategy is that the longer your home is on the market without an offer the less it will sell for in the long run. The homeowner who starts at the lower price often ends up getting more money for the home than the homeowner who wants to just “try” the higher price for awhile.
Homes that are priced right generally sell quickly in today’s market.
As a homeowner myself I don’t think I can price my home correctly. I am biased and I think I am probably under pricing it. At the very least I would need and want a second opinion.
Unless a home is underpriced sellers can plan on getting less than the asking price. When I work as a buyers agent I rarely encourage the buyers to offer full price when I know from experience that the sellers will probably take less and even if they don’t it never hurts to ask and do a little negotiating.
If you live in St. Paul and would like some general information about home values please see Local market conditions & home prices.
There aren’t just some agents, there are plenty of agents who throw out some pretty excessive numbers for home sellers in order to get that business. They know they can always lower the price when the house doesn’t immediately sell. Really dislike that about our field, actually.
Being a listing agent is all about getting home sellers to sign a contract with us and not so much about selling the house which in most cases is easier than getting that listing contract signed. Yes there are days when it all makes me feel like quitting.
What those agents fail to realize is that not all sellers are going to lower the price and now they are stuck with an overpriced listing that is a drain on their lime, resources, and reputation.
I know in my area exactly what agents will take a listing no matter what. Such a disservice to the homeowner too.