Is the Longer a Home on the Market the Less it’s Worth?

That may be the case in our local housing market. There are less than a thousand single family homes on the market with an average sales price of $370,000.

That may be the case in our local housing market. There are less than a thousand single family homes on the market with an average sales price of $370,000. They’ve been on the market an average of eighty-nine days. However, the average sales on the market for sold homes in the last thirteen months was forty-seven days and the average days on the market in the last six months was forty-five days or fifty percent less than current standing inventory days on the market. Sellers need to be aware that if your home is not under contract in forty-five days, it is undoubtedly, at least statistically, over-priced.

The percent sales price to original list price also confirms this trend. Today, the average home is discounted 3.5% from original list price. Once the home has been reduced, it still sells for 1.2% less than list.  Price the home right and you’re going to have a sale in 45 days or sooner. But, price the home above market, the longer the wait and the greater the discount. Anecdotally, we see this play out in our market on a weekly basis.  Some for sale homes receive multiple offers within a few days. Others sit for three months or longer. Yes, the condition of the home plays an important role and so does the first photo of the home that pops into MLS and gets circulated through IDX channels to the world through Zillow and Trulia. Today’s buyers shop online and a bad photo and mundane description can easily destroy a home’s perceived value at first glance.

Realtors want to get the highest and best price for a seller and thus may have a tendency to initially over-price a home for sale. It takes a strong willed realtor, backed up with statistical information, to tell a seller his home is not worth what his neighbor’s sold for a year ago. Perhaps, today’s market can best be categorized as fickle and trending downstream.

For many buyers, it’s still all about location whether it’s being in a particular school district, near the grandkids or just having a direct and short commute. With our aging housing stock, sellers are taking a gamble when it comes to remodeling before putting their home on the market. Neutral is still the best bet when it comes to interiors. Home owners should put their favorite colors in their home furnishings, accessories and personal possessions. Take the aqua with you when you move rather than leaving it on the walls or floor.

I’m opening from 1 to 4 pm on Sunday, November 6th in a just completed John Hagmeier home (with neutral colors—combination of grays and beige) at Resolution Pointe, Anchorage’s most popular new home community.  Join me for more market conversation.

Directions: Minnesota to W. 100th Ave exit, take right, continue down 100th, turns into Pointe Resolution Drive, left on Chiniak Bay Drive, left on Easter Island Circle.