How to be a happy seller in a buyer's market
Selling in a buyer’s market doesn’t appear to be a good idea but it could actually be an excellent idea. Why? Because most home sellers then become home buyers. Once the house is under contract or sold, the seller then becomes a buyer. At this point, most know the price range and area in which we want to look and we may even have a house already picked out.
Of course, selling in a seller’s market means you might get more for your home than you thought. It might sell very quickly with multiple offers and of course, as the seller, you would be very happy. Selling in a buyer’s market can mean aggressive pricing to compete with other available properties, longer time on the market and getting less for your home than you thought.
A buyer in a seller’s market will likely not be able to have any contingencies accepted with their offer, have few homes to choose from, have a short time frame in which to make an offer, face rapid increases in asking prices, potentially contend with multiple offers from other buyers and deal with a take it or leave it attitude of sellers who can easily find another buyer. On the other hand, a buyer in a buyer’s market will likely be able to have contingencies accepted with their offer, a large number of homes to choose from, time to look and think before making an offer, watch asking prices coming down, sellers offering incentives to buyers and the possibility of buying more home for the same price.
If a seller waits for the market to turn around and then sell, it could be one of the worst times to sell. The seller will get less for the home because you rode the market down and when you do get it sold you are now looking at paying more because the market is going up and asking prices are increasing.
As a seller in a buyer’s market think about these things. Price it right for maximum exposure and while you might get less than you thought, you’ll most likely be able to buy more with what you do get. It is always more fun being a buyer in a buyer’s market but with some careful planning, research and thought, sellers can have just as good an experience in a buyer’s market.
From Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day, it is always a little slow for Charleston real estate and one would expect a significant amount of new listings to come on the market right after the first of the year. The absolute peak of the buyer’s market should be from now until Super Bowl Sunday. You might wonder what the Super Bowl has to do with real estate and I would suggest, it is the last day of winter and the spring selling and buying season will begin the next day!