Pricing Your Home to Sell

If you’re preparing to sell and list a home, one of the biggest considerations you’ll decide on is your asking price. No two homes are exactly the same, even in the same neighborhood, which makes pricing a home for sale both an art and a science. Price too low and your investment might just slip through the cracks; price too high and you may scare people away.

So, what are some strategies that will help you price your home? Consider these five approaches to determine the correct house value and listing price:

Work With a Real Estate Agent

A Howard Hanna real estate agent can correctly calculate and consider many different factors when determining proper pricing for your home, including local market conditions such as the rise or fall of home prices. They can also tell you whether you’re looking at a buyer’s or a seller’s market, which will impact your sale strategy overall.

Be sure to work with an agent from start to finish, by the way! Listing a home is just the beginning of the sale process. Having the advice of a dedicated professional can make your entire sale smooth, quick, and relatively painless.

Know What Does – and Does Not – Impact Market Value

If you’re thinking about selling, you’ve likely also given some thought to some home improvement projects meant to increase the value of your home. But if you don’t know exactly what does and does not impact the value of a home, you may be surprised or disappointed when a listing price doesn’t give you the results you want.

Evaluating market value is a big reason to work with a real estate agent, who is trained to review the important factors and give you advice based on what matters. An agent will determine the value of your home based on the current market, competition, financing options, economy, location, and the buyer’s perception of its condition.

They will also ignore irrelevant factors, which include:

• The contents or investment you have in the property
• The amount of money you need from the property
• The amount you want for the property
• The appraised value of the property
• What you’ve heard your neighbor’s house sold for
• The amount the tax office says it is worth
• How much it is insured for
• Memories and treasures
• Home prices in the area where you are moving to

Leave Room for Negotiation

All parties in a real estate transaction want the best value. Your buyer doesn’t want to overpay, and you don’t want to feel like you’ve left money on the table. With that in mind, it’s helpful to have a price with some wiggle room for maneuvering on both sides of the transaction. Selling a home can be emotional, but now is a good time to stay realistic so that buyers don’t pass on your place.

Study Past Home Sales

While the value of a single person’s house won’t affect the value of yours, understanding the history behind your house and your local market might. That’s why it can be helpful to get a market analysis and study past sales. You should also use a current market analysis from your Howard Hanna Realtor to inform your decision on the pricing of your home. This detailed explanation will help you to understand how your home should be priced based on both existing and historical data.

Understand a Homebuyer’s Mindset

Last but not least, get into the buyer mindset as you prepare to sell your own house. What are the qualities you love in your current home? What sets your place apart from the others in your area? These are the things that will help you connect with a buyer. Then, working with your sales associate, you can figure out how to best leverage the individuality of your home for a great price.

Finding the “sweet spot” of home pricing is a delicate balance, but using these tips and strategies, you’re sure to have a win-win for you and your buyer. If you’ve been thinking about listing your home, don’t forget to call Howard Hanna and work with one of our award-winning agents!

Want to learn more about what to expect as you prepare to sell your house? For a summary of the selling timeline, click here! We’ve also written a Seller’s Guide to help you learn how to sell your house, complete with tips for working with a real estate agent, low-cost ideas for staging your home, and more! Download the free guide today to take advantage of over 20 pages packed with advice and worksheets all geared toward one thing: helping you sell your home faster, easier, and for more money.