{"id":799,"date":"2018-05-08T21:49:56","date_gmt":"2018-05-08T21:49:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/?p=799"},"modified":"2018-05-08T21:52:56","modified_gmt":"2018-05-08T21:52:56","slug":"sellers-continue-to-hang-on-to-the-power","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/?p=799","title":{"rendered":"Sellers Continue to Hang on to the Power"},"content":{"rendered":"

While some areas of the nation are at long last reporting a slowing of sales, the valley\u2019s market is continuing to power forward both in rising sales and appreciation.\u00a0 Real estate has always \"\"been area specific, so while national trends are interesting, they are not particularly meaningful when interpreting a local market.\u00a0 New listings to MLS in the first quarter of 2018 for Maricopa and Pinal County under 400K are logging the lowest numbers for a first quarter since the Cromford Report began tracking in 2001.\u00a0 Not surprisingly given the low supply, appreciation is higher than it\u2019s been in the last several years.\u00a0 To quote the Cromford Report:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe annual $\/SF for all areas & types is 7.3% above this time last year. The increase last year was 5.2%, with 5.5% the year before that while 2015 gave us 5.3%. Back in 2014 we were still experiencing the coiled-spring effect and $\/SF had jumped 17.7%.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Given the amount of market strength most sellers have (particularly under 400K), it would seem improbable that sellers are still managing to give away thousands, right?\u00a0 Well history has a terrible habit of repeating itself \u2013 so just like in the past (anyone remember 2005?) – overheated seller markets don\u2019t just cause trouble for buyers.\u00a0 Yes, seller markets can still cause problems for sellers.<\/p>\n

Here are a few of the top mistakes we currently see sellers making:<\/p>\n

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  1. Thinking that having one buyer is a success story<\/strong>. As sellers and agents so often say \u201cwe just need one buyer\u201d \u2013 and of course there is some truth in that. But one of the perks of a seller\u2019s market is the potential of multiple offers.\u00a0 Too many sellers (and their agents who should<\/u> know better) take the very first offer that they receive.\u00a0 That may be a great strategy in a buyer\u2019s market. The premise \u201cyour first offer is often your best\u201d – is based on the fact that long days on the market create the perception the property is over-priced or has condition issues making it harder to defend value to buyers.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0By contrast, in a strong seller\u2019s market taking the first offer eliminates the option of multiple offers.\u00a0 From our years of experience, creating the opportunity for multiple offers is how we really maximize your profits.\u00a0 Agents who don\u2019t do this (which sadly is the majority) or \u201cfor sale by owners\u201d who find one buyer are likely giving up thousands of dollars.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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      \n
    1. Thinking the new business models of online offers or investors are paying \u201cfair market\u2019 value. <\/strong>It is interesting to us, given that we have seen about every business model in our 40 years of practicing real estate, that this business model of online offers is getting a lot of hype. Admittedly they have tapped in to the public\u2019s desire for Amazon type selling.\u00a0 But at the end of the day, they are investors who don\u2019t represent the homeowner.\u00a0 Their pitch says things like \u201ccommissions are too high\u201d while charging \u201ccustomer experience fees\u201d averaging 12% – far more than any commission.\u00a0 Or they say \u201cthis is a competitive offer\u201d while eliminating any competition \u2013 costing sellers 10-30% in unrealized net dollars.\u00a0 Also, while telling sellers there is no need for them<\/u> to go on the market, these same investors always put their<\/u> homes on the market when they resell them.\u00a0 Shouldn\u2019t that be a dead giveaway as to how to get top dollar? It would be far more accurate if they said \u201cwe are investors who want to buy your home for less than it is worth and then re-sell it for a profit\u201d. But then, that wouldn\u2019t look like a sexy new business model would it?\u00a0 Take away the online component, and this is the same old investor model that has existed since we began our careers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

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      1. Thinking that preparing your home for sale is a long and expensive process. <\/strong>Most sellers overthink and over prepare for the home sale process. The truth is that many homes can be sold in their current condition.\u00a0 We sold a house that had the garage caved in and was tagged by the city as unlivable until repaired.\u00a0 We had multiple offers, sold it in 4 days, obtained over list price, and the seller made no repairs.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

         <\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Thinking that you have to show your home 24\/7. <\/strong>Depending on the price range, we have had \u201cweekend only\u201d sellers or even \u201cone weekend only\u201d sellers. This is a supply and demand equation.\u00a0 The higher the demand and the lower the supply, the smaller the window for showings required to sell. Many sellers can allow one full weekend of showings, review the multiple offers on Monday and be under contract by Tuesday.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

           <\/p>\n

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          1. Thinking that all agents are the same. <\/strong>Oh heck, we\u2019ve taught you better than that, haven\u2019t we? One of the pitfalls of a strong seller\u2019s market is the amount of inexperienced agents it attracts.\u00a0 Even the \u201cexperienced\u201d agent does around 6-10 deals a year.\u00a0 If you subscribe to Malcolm Gladwell\u2019s theory of 10,000 hours of experience are needed to get expert at something, most agents will be retired before they hit 10,000 hours.\u00a0 In the last year alone we helped over 300 sellers sell.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

             <\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Failing to be aware of market value. <\/strong>The problem with either improving or declining markets is that history is not<\/u> repeating itself. Therefore using only past sales will not tell you where the market is now.\u00a0 In evaluating pricing, we examine the supply\/demand ratio in your neighborhood which determines value.\u00a0 Even then the market can move more quickly than can be seen.\u00a0 Demand can be very volatile while supply is not. That is why exposing the home to the most buyers possible secures the highest price \u2013 it accommodates demand volatility.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

               <\/p>\n

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              1. Thinking that commissions are where the most money is saved or lost. <\/strong>Shakespeare said \u201cA rose by any other name would smell as sweet\u201d. Perhaps, not the best analogy when discussing the second most dreaded word in the English language \u201ccommissions\u201d (the first being \u201ctaxes\u201d).\u00a0 The truth is that the seller is going to pay someone to sell their home.\u00a0 Sellers will either pay by hiring a professional, paying \u201cseller experience fees\u201d to an instant offer company, or selling to an investor who \u201ccharges nothing\u201d but takes a minimum of 10-30% off the price. Rather than quoting Shakespeare, perhaps the better quote is \u201cthere is no free lunch\u201d.\u00a0 With that said, are we still an advocate for a flexible commission structure?\u00a0 Sure \u2013 we too love to save money.\u00a0 Just don\u2019t give away way more than the cost of a commission in an attempt to avoid commissions.\u00a0 Instead make sure you are paying for the best representation money can buy.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                Thank you for allowing us to share our thoughts on what pains us the most \u2013 watching sellers give away their hard earned equity.\u00a0 As always, we are here to serve you.<\/p>\n

                Russell & Wendy Shaw<\/p>\n

                (mostly Wendy)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                While some areas of the nation are at long last reporting a slowing of sales, the valley\u2019s market is continuing to power forward both in rising sales and appreciation.\u00a0 Real estate has always been area specific, so while national trends are interesting, they are not particularly meaningful when interpreting a local market.\u00a0 New listings to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-home-values","category-market-stats"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=799"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":801,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799\/revisions\/801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nohasslelistingblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}