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 Dear
Steve,
If my home is appraised at $250,000 but the market is sluggish, at what price should I have my Realtor list the house? Also, how much below that listing price can I expect offers to be from interested buyers?
-- Kevin R.
 Dear
Kevin,
All real estate, like politics, is local. What is considered an acceptable "percent-off" asking price in one market might elicit a sarcastic, "Yeah, you've got a prayer," response in another.
But assuming the home is in excellent condition and your local
housing market is suffering from the widespread
weakness we've seen in the past year or so, you'll
probably list the house around 5 percent off the
appraisal price and get offers from 5 percent
to 12 percent below that. As you suspect, the
negotiation game favors the buyer at present as
we watch more and more of those "price reduced"
hangers swinging in the breeze on "home-for-sale"
signs. In June the inventory of homes on the market
stood at 3.7 million, up 39 percent from a year
ago, according to the National Association of
Realtors. But don't panic. A seasoned Realtor
who has ridden out the last few real estate cycles
should be able to guide you in your pricing. Your
agent needs to produce a comparable market analysis,
or CMA, for you based on recently closed sales,
pending sales (both homes under contract and in
escrow), average times on the market and the volume
of properties for sale in a competing price range.
If the information is available, ask your agent
to include the price per square foot of those
"comp" sales, adjusted for lot-size variances
and excluding new-construction homes. Data should
go back no longer than three months and cover
sales no further away than a half mile (a quarter-mile
is even better if there are enough comps to examine.)
In a flat market, it's best to consider all offers, even those that seem ridiculously low, because at least you have a starting point. You really want to get into the negotiation stage. On that note, if you're a highly motivated seller and need to exit your home quickly due to job change, divorce or another compelling reason, expect to come off the price a little more unless you can convincingly obscure your desperation, which is tough to do in a soft market. It's also important that you try to contain your emotions in the process because they probably won't serve you well.
Yes, you may have to bite the bullet here. But don't hesitate to use that buying leverage if you plan to purchase a home elsewhere once you've secured your sale. I wish you selling (and pricing) success.
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