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Strategies for selling your home in a Buyers Market

by Robert Earl The Earl of Real Estate

Obviously, if you are considering Selling Your Home in a known Buyers Market then you are truly motivated to sell and are facing an opportunity that causes you to taken action sooner, rather than later. You do not have the option of waiting. You need your property to sell, no matter what the market conditions.

Let us give you a scenario to explain some logic. Put yourself in the shoes of the Buyer. If you knew that your area was in a Buyer Market, and you knew that the last property sold for $450,000 & that prices had been dropping over the past few months. would you as the buyer, offer more than $450,000 for the next property that came on the market or less than $450,000? The answer is usually less. So you see, if you were the first one to sell you would win. If you were the one at $450,000 you make more than the next one & so on & so on.

Determine a number known as your holding cost: Most sellers look at the one shear number of how much less they are going to list for as compared to the home that sold 2 years ago or the last property that sold prior to your listing without taking into account something called the waiting cost. Holding cost normally includes the Principal, Interest, Taxes & Insurance that would be outlayed plus any Condominium or Home Owners Association dues. In addition, add on the amount that property values have been declining and multiple this by the period of time that it has been taking homes to sell. Then ask yourself is it better to hold or wait or is it better to take the "hit" up front, rather than prolonging the issue.

Position yourself to ride the 1st & biggest wave: A buyers' market does not allow a seller to try to price a property high hoping to leave room to negotiate in the future or to lower the price in the future and still get the top dollar the market will initially bear. The time to price the property correctly & have it in the best condition is right away. The greatest number of prospective buyers will be coming through your property in the 1st 30 days and most of these will categorize your property as overpriced & move on to another property if it is not correct when they first see it. It is very important that you determine your Northern Virginia Condo & House Values correctly.

The Silver Lining to selling a condo in Northern Virginia during in a Buyers Market is when you are trading up. Sure, you are not getting as much as you wanted on your existing property, but you will be paying the same percentage less in a trade up situation. And the same % of a larger number means you are saving more money than you "lost" on your current property.

Remember, In a Buyers Market, marked by declining prices, each month you wait to sell results in less money you will get at closing.

Robert Earl - Founder of The Earl of Real Estate Team is a Real Estate Entrepreneur & Real Estate Coach serving the Northern Virginia Real Estate Market. The Earl of Real Estate Team works with Annandale VA Real Estate, Condos, Townhomes & Homes for Sale

Published June 27th, 2007

Filed in Finance