» Home Sellers: How Do You Know When Your Home is Priced Right?

Home Sellers: How Do You Know When Your Home is Priced Right?

Selling your home? How do you know when your home is priced right? When the agents who’ve shown your home call your agent first.

When I list a home for sale, it’s really exciting when the buyer’s agent contacts me, the listing agent, first. I know my sellers are pretty close to the mark on price. If the buyer’s agent contacts me first, the buyer has an interest in the home. The buyer’s agent is asking the questions, not me. The questions asked are more about the buyer’s concerns:

Why is the seller moving?
What’s their time frame?
Is the swing set included?
How old is the roof and furnace?

Questions like these above are “buying questions.” It means your home has made it onto the buyer’s consideration list. Your home is on the list, not off. The buyer is looking at your home more closely to see how it fits them, their needs and their lifestyle.

There’s a different exchange between agents when the listing agent is contacting the buyer’s agent first. It doesn’t always mean the buyer has ruled out the house if the seller’s agent initiates contact, but it often that is the case.

Typically, I’ll contact the buyer’s agent via email with a link to the listing and photos to refresh the agent’s memory. This contact usually generates a response from the buyers’ agent like:

home to close to a busy street
lot not big enough
great house, but first day looking
bedrooms too small, etc, etc
nice home, but did not work for my buyer
saw a home they liked better because the kitchen was redone

There’s a big difference between the two scenarios. In the first scenario, the buyer’s agent is calling me first to get answers to the buyers’ questions. These answers may remove some of the buyer’s concerns and help the buyer move towards a purchase.

The second, in which I ask for feedback first, the answers will tell more about why the buyers did not buy.

Sellers need to pay attention to what their agents are learning from the contact with the buyer’s agents. Find out what is being asked and answered, so you’ll have a better feel for whether your home is priced right for the market and the competition. If your home is not priced right, you’ll need to change the price to meet the market. The type of feedback your home receives, will give you the answer to your pricing.

What other questions give some clues as to the buyer’s thoughts about a home for sale?

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