Sellers Beware: Overpricing Can Be A Huge Mistake

With rising market prices, many sellers have felt the urge to overprice their properties to get a good deal out of the trend. Overpricing a property can be a huge mistake when coupled alongside a low inventory and rising interest rates, as this is something that can easily turn buyers and investors away. This is a really discouraging notion, with the housing market just beginning to come back nicely.

We have had the most success, repeatedly, by pricing competitively.  Generating high interest, getting multiple prospective buyers in the door, is the single best way to negotiate the best sale price for the home seller.  

Asking prices, according to Trulia, have dramatically jumped up and continue to accelerate at a rapid pace. Year-over-year prices jumped 10.7%, Quarter-over quarter 4.1% (16.4% annualized), and month-over-month 1.5% (18% annualized).

An 18% increase in home prices within the next 12 months is highly unlikely under any circumstance. It is more likely that in a more expensive market, price appreciation will slow and inventory increase. Purchasers often set out with a pre-set budget anyway, so it is unlikely that they will bite at the higher property prices anyway - not when there are other prices available to them, and market analysts to tell them what is overpriced.

The bottom line: don't get carried away with the "increasing prices" headlines of the past few months.
Overpricing can put your property out of contention for buyers, and wont further your gains. To get a good idea of where your property falls in the Chicagoland market, don't hesitate to send me an e-mail or give me a call. We can price it at the place that will get it purchased.