What will lowering the price do?

Buyers will know that you have lowered the price if they have a good agent because their agent will update them on any price changes in their target neighborhoods.

I don't know if it will make a difference or not though. Do you feel that your house is well priced for your market? Do you have listings that were higher than you "crossing" your price and starting to go lower or are things holding for now?

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November 20 2007

2 Big 2 Fail
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Lowering it $10,000 won't really make a difference.

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November 20 2007

Sunny4
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Rachel Pajaczek, "Seattle Agent"

I feel that our house is priced a bit on the upper end. However, it is situated in an established golf community with many larger expensive homes. It's hard to compare other homes in the area since they are much larger than ours. I am hoping that we don't have to lower the price and just have an offer at 239. Once lower the price there isn't much wiggle room. So much is going to be taken out and I feel like we are just giving it away (so to speak).

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November 20 2007

Rachel Pajaczek, "Seattle Agent"
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you don't have much wiggle room....why is that? Did you buy your home recently? Did you take money out in a refi?--
I would say price it at $199K for a weekend to get a swarm of people in.....but sounds like you would not be able to do that.

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November 20 2007

2 Big 2 Fail
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Maybe she can price it at $199,000 with the hopes of creating a biddig war driving the price up.

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November 20 2007

Mike2020
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When people compare your house to other 249,000 houses.. they decide which is the best value. If you drop the house to 239,000.. You gain an advantage over ALL of the 249,000 houses in terms of price.. PLUS, you gain some people who were debating amongst the 239,000 houses..

Although Alpine acts like $10,000 won't make a difference..

Imagine Apple having iPods for $499

If they priced them at $449.. More people would be interested..

$429 More people
$399 More people
$374 More people
$299 More people
$253 More people

$199 Black Friday Special... <---- You get people killing each other to get in through the front door to get a great deal...

The lower the price.. The higher your demand will be..

This isn't quantum physics where everything is in packets.. ie. 249, 299, 349, 399

It's a relatively smooth line where each dollar counts..

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November 20 2007

Mike2020
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Do all types of analysis and make sure that any search a buyer will do (ie. $/sq ft in comps from past 3 months) that your house is #1.. That will put it on their list as #1.. and boom.. You get a buyer..

Think of selling your home as a lemonade stand in a Zoo.. How would you tell your kids to increase their chances of selling lemonade when nobody seems to be wanting to buy any..

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November 20 2007

pub123
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durenda
can you tell me if people are buying in my neck of the woods. Im having a OH sat and advertizing it all over..determined to move by christmas. btw can u read my thread about costs ty 8)

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November 20 2007

SoCal BubbleBrain
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'creating a biddig war'

LOL. 2002 called and they want their term back.

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November 20 2007

Robin Lynch, "robin398"
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Robin Lynch, "robin398"

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Zillow All-Star

Since September 2009

If you lower the price it doesn't mean that you will be inundated with homebuyers. What is your marketing plan?

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November 20 2007

Sunny4
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Thanks Durenda for all your advice and input. :)

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2 Big 2 Fail
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We stilll have bidding wars today SoCal. In Motclair, I frequently hear about them. The realtors there deliberately underprice so the homes sell for over asking price. You could have seen an example of this if you watched the show "Bought and SOld" on HGTV, which is filmed in Montclair.

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November 20 2007

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On the show, the house was listed for $750,000 and sold for $801,000 (all cash) a week later after a 3 party bidding war. And this was duirng the market slump, not in 2004 or 2005.

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November 20 2007

Jean Doyle, "jeandoyle"
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You expose your house to buyers that at 249k it was to high for them. The idea is to drive more buyer traffic through your home so you can get the highest and best price for your home. You won't get that if only one person looks at your home.

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November 21 2007

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One thing that helps is to think like a buyer and ask yourself these questions:

If I, a buyer, am to buy Thanksgiving's house, I get same location at other homes but at less square footage. So what would be the advantages of buying Thanksgiving's house that would most likely persuade me to choose Tthat home over the neighbors?:

1. Significant difference in montly payment. That can be a motivator for a buyer.

2. Significant difference in listing price to where, if I'm a buyer whose income is such that I never thought I could get into a golf community, the list price of Thanksgiving's house makes that dream possible.

3. Significant difference in interior - a snazzier kitchen or more nicely appointed bathrooms than in the competitors' homes, which means the "wow" factor makes up for the lost square footage, should that be the case.

Once you've done that the little mental exercise , it makes it easier for you to figure out your best, more realistic price to sell. A buyer will choose the larger home for the square footage if the price differences are not drastic enough and if the interiors /yards are similar. The buyer can't rationalize paying almost the same price for getting less. So price accordingly to where he could rationalize buying your home instead of your neighbors' homes.

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November 21 2007

Angelique01
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Lucy is absolutely right. By way of example, in specific areas that I like best, I'm looking for the most square footage for the price.

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November 21 2007

whataboutmycrib
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Clearly this is a seller who is pricing the house based on what is mortgaged on the house. Any seller in that position is at a disadvantage. Unless you have no competition anywhere in your area in that price range you may do well to price at where you want to be, but some people are willing to go with a differenent neighborhood for a better price. Unless the buyer is looking specifically in your neighborhood or street then you need to look at a 5-10 mile radius of homes to see what your up against. Many buyers are much more negotiable with their wants these days since there is so many homes for sale.

I had a buyer who said they wanted more bling and pay less, said I was over priced when I was priced 10% under appraisal.

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November 21 2007

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As stated above, appropriate pricing is truly dependent upon making an honest assessment of the relevant competition, then beating them - either by price, quality, or both. That is really all that matters.

In deciding how to price our home last summer, my husband and I made a list of the "comparables" in our town and drove around to see them in person. It helped us to see the pros/cons of our house in comparison (sq ft., yard, interior amenities, school system, etc.) and to price just below those houses that were most similar to us. It worked well.

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November 21 2007

Joe Spake, "Joe Spake"
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Don't be overly concerned with price points. $10K is a significant drop, but comparable recent sales are a good measure of value. The big question in this market is IS THERE ANY DEMAND? If this house is not the best among its competitors, then the price cut will not help. If it is fresh on the market, the cut will definitely draw buyers. If it has been languishing over 60 days, there probably won't be much interest.

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November 21 2007

BigBadHomeSale.com
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Some great advice on this thread! I've seen a significant change in comments during the past several weeks. Folks realizing that price is only one factor.

Buyers will focus on price as long as you don't give them any other significant differentiation from other homes.

Emotion is a much more powerful persuader than price.

Your job is to get people "Envisioning" themselves living in your home.

The web is a great way to do this. Put up your own web page. Show some videos of birthday parties, Christmas and other great times you've had at the house. Inject some humor, make people "like you" and "LOVE" the house. Be creative. Be different, and watch the buyers come.

Regards,
Steve Rosenbaum
http://BigBadHomeSale.com

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November 21 2007

Mike2020
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BigBad-
I don't know where your reading comprehension skills gave you the idea that people are advocating that by picturing a birthday party in the house via the use of pictures, you could sell the house for a better price.

P.S. Your spam is horrible. No different than.. "I can make you a millionaire FAST!" "This tool will help you cut tomatoes FAST!!" Worst site EVER.

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November 21 2007

Angelique01
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Ach, Steve is selling something. Buyers are shopping price, really we are. It's exactly this simple: The nicest house with the most square footage in the best area gets the sale first. We'll consider changing areas, just a little, or buying something not as nice if the price is really good.

Around here, the prices are so similar from city to city, that the good areas are far more likely to get the sales.

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November 21 2007

BigBadHomeSale.com
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LOL, Thanks for the vote of confidence Mike. Usually, close minded people that have no creative ideas are the first and most vocal to criticize. "Let's do it that way, because everybody else does it that way!" That's a recipe for competing on price alone and giving away tens of thousands of dollars.

Actually, it wasn't my reading comprehension skills that gave me the idea. Rather it was the successful sales of homes as well as proven behavior and influence practices documented by marketing experts such as Dr. Robert Cialdini, Dave Lakhani, Paco Underhill and scores of others.

And your research comes from where...?

As for "Worst site EVER". I have to laugh!!!

Happy Thanksgiving.

Regards,
Steve Rosenbaum
http://BigBadHomeSale.com

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November 21 2007

whataboutmycrib
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Steve, I think that schtick on your website would have been more sellable in 2001-2005........your obviously going after the uneducated person who has no clue of the deep waters that are out there. From all that I have read on these boards there are very few people on here who would buy into it what you are selling. Desperation can bring some sellers to do certain things or think what you have to say is going to make the difference to them and sad that there is always someone sitting on the sideline waiting to make a buck off others misery. I bet all your advice can be found on wikipedia.

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November 21 2007

Angelique01
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The kind of thing that Steve is doing is really taking advantage of sellers in a difficult market. It's so icky.

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November 21 2007

BigBadHomeSale.com
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Thank you again for the warm welcome.

People come to Zillow for advice and guidance and appreciate learning about various strategies. I know because of the dozens of emails I get each and every day.

Here on Zillow, I share advice openly, constructively and free of charge. Why do you object to that? True, if people want to go beyond the basics, I have additional material available. I don't hawk it here. All my prices are but a fraction of the commission you charge your clients.

I really see no need to justify the success of my teachings. It's well documented.

People can simply choose. If they do not see any results and would like to learn how to differentiate their homes and build traffic, I have a lot more to say than the standard "Lower your price".

3girls, Your profile says it all. It took you 6.5 months and $80,000 to sell your home. You would think you'd be a little more open to suggestions. I'd also love you to show me the information you think I have lifted off of wikipedia.

Angelique01: My clients have sold their homes. It cost them less than $200. How is that icky?

I welcome constructive criticism. Will gladly demonstrate how to generate more activity for your homes. Why not have an open mind instead of slinging baseless accusations? (You haven't even seen any of my material and have no idea about what I teach!!!)

Regards,
Steve Rosenbaum

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November 21 2007

Angelique01
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Steve, if you are not "hawking" your website, why do you even post it?

Why do I think it's icky? Because no amount of pretty pictures of well staged houses, families, or puppies and kittens will entice a buyer into buying a house that is over-priced in a declining market. You're attempting to make a profit on desperation. There are ever so many people in difficult situations out there. They need to sell their houses for more money than they can get today. That's sad enough without people preying on their wallets.

I'll be waiting to see your helpful information, given for free. Go on ahead and show us all that you're not doing this to make a profit. I'm open to admitting I'm wrong.

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November 21 2007

BigBadHomeSale.com
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Angelique,
Thank you for the courtesy of a reply. I post to teach, to give back, and, yes, I do have a product to market. That is quite different than spam which does not contribute anything of value. Furthermore, I have helped desparate people out of situations in which they couldn't find solutions.

You are misconstuing my words. Nowhere do I teach that you can sell an over-priced home. I do teach that you can get fair market value and sell your home quickly by attracting more people to your house.

Now let me ask you, as a seller: would you rather have 1 buyer interested in your home, or have several buyers interested in your home?

It's as simple as that. I teach ways to improve marketing efficiency, automate the follow up procedure, and differentiate homes from others on the home.

Finally, I appreciate your comment about posting free information. In fact, you'll find much of that throughout comments on these boards.

Here are a couple threads (there are many more out there):

http://www.zillow.com/forum/site/ViewThread.htm?tid=12364
http://www.zillow.com/forum/site/ViewThread.htm?tid=12071

I won't ask you to admit that you're wrong, but simply refrain from premature judgemental comments.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Steve Rosenbaum

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November 21 2007

Angelique01
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I answered you on the other thread.

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November 21 2007

whataboutmycrib
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