An in-depth understanding of the Michiana market, its dynamics, and the psychology of home buyers build the foundation for the strategies we use to advise our clients on their optimum list price.

At any given time there are several buyers actively searching for a home similar to yours, and your home will show up in all of their searches the day it is listed. This is why a property attracts the most attention from potential buyers right out of the gate (see Figure 1). Once this peak interest period has passed, activity significantly diminishes. Now the only new sets of eyes are the slow influx of new buyers entering the marketplace and less motivated buyers who are less diligent in their searches. Capitalizing on this initial interest period is the most powerful method of helping to ensure your property sells quickly and doesn’t die on the market.

FIGURE 1: ACTIVITY VS. TIMING

At any given time there are several buyers actively searching for a home similar to yours, and your home will show up in all of their searches the day it is listed. This is why a property attracts the most attention from potential buyers right out of the gate (see Figure 1). Once this peak interest period has passed, activity significantly diminishes. Now the only new sets of eyes are the slow influx of new buyers entering the marketplace and less motivated buyers who are less diligent in their searches. Capitalizing on this initial interest period is the most powerful method of helping to ensure your property sells quickly and doesn’t die on the market.

FIGURE 2: SALE PRICE VS. TIMING

This is important in realizing the highest possible sale price for your home (see Figure 2) because once a listing has grown stale on the market, lower quality offers gain greater appeal and price cuts often become necessary to stimulate lackluster demand. The sense of urgency and competition that drives prices up is long gone at this point. Therefore your home has the highest chances for a it’s best sale when it is newly listed and the price is reasonable.

FIGURE 3: BUYERS VS. ASKING PRICE

This is due in part to the fact that when a home is listed at a price that is significantly above market value, many prospective buyers who would otherwise be prime candidates for a purchase just won’t see it (see Figure 3). Think about it. Serious buyers are looking for homes in the price range that they can afford. If you list your home significantly above market value, just blindly hoping that someone will come along and overpay, the buyers who would be most interested may not even see it. That is why establishing the list price of your property based upon its likely sale price properly exposes it to prospective buyers, balancing your chances for a sale while ensuring a final price that maximizes your return at closing.

But you shouldn’t misunderstand this to mean that your home is worth exactly as much as the similar one down the street. By ensuring your home is well prepared for market and then maximizing the impact of every aspect of your home’s presentation – we can substantially increase its perceived value. Their is usually about a +/- 10% range of values that similar homes sell for, and we can push your price to the top of that spread by making sure it shows as superior to its competition and then aggressively marketing it. Competition and a sense of urgency are the most powerful factors if you’re looking to push up the sale price of your home. The best way to sell for higher than market value is to list at market value and let buyers drive up the price through competition.