Maxims For Pricing A Home
Determining an appropriate list price is “an art”.
Below are industry maxims regarding “the art of pricing a home”

Link To A Printable Version of Maxims For Pricing A Home

16 Industry Maxims To Keep In Mind When Selecting A List Price For Your Home

• While the home owner determines the asking price, the market will ultimately determine a home’s value (the sale price).

• Price is the most important part of the marketing plan.

• The list price must position your home IN the market … not just ON the market. In other words, fit the product to the market … not the market to the product.

• The wrong list price will attract the wrong buyers.

• Marketing a home is a competition. Select a list price that will cause home buyers to compete with each other to buy your home ... rather than your home competing for the home buyers’ attention.

• Nothing excites home buyers more than an accurately priced home.

• A buyer is more likely to make a full price offer on a house that is appropriately priced rather than make a low offer on an overpriced home.

• Overpricing a house does not change the home’s value. It only changes the likelihood of a successful sale.

• There is nothing wrong with any house that the right price won’t fix.

• Your best opportunity to sell a home occurs within the first three weeks on the market. Price the home correctly at the beginning and you will have a successful, problem-free experience.

• The longer a home stays on the market, the greater the difference will be between the initial asking price and the final sale price.

• The longer a home stays on the market, the more it reinforces the perception that either 1) the home is overpriced or 2) there is something wrong with the house.

• The longer a house stays on the market, the more it becomes stigmatized as a house that has been “passed over”. Subsequent price changes may not be able to erase the home's reputation as being "the house no one else wanted" (i.e. a “markdown”).

• Overpriced homes are often used as “tools” to demonstrate to buyers what excellent values the other homes on the market are.

• Be better than the competition. Position your home so that it is the best house in its price range. By doing so, you will eliminate comparisons and destroy the competition.

• The condition of a house is a primary issue in determining its value. What really concerns buyers is NOT that they might be paying too much for a home, but rather, that the home might require expensive repairs and become a “bottomless money pit”.