The fifteen closed sales averaged selling for 85% of their original asking price and were on the market for an average of 157 days. Note that I used the actual days on market rather than the lower manipulated CDOM (combined days on market) number showing on several of the closed listings. The average 85% of original asking price is not a sign of a healthy market but it does hint that more sellers are accepting the fact that their original price expectations were overly optimistic. There is another story hidden within the overall story and it stands out in strong contrast to the averages.
There were five listings that sold in less than 24 days on the market and they averaged 98% of original asking price. Price correctly and sell quickly. It seems an easy concept to understand but it was ignored by two thirds of the sellers who wound up making multiple price drops over months to finally arrive at a price that worked. Without easy access to market stats sellers have to rely on their listing agents to do the homework and advise them on competitive pricing. Knowing the neighbor sold two years ago for $XXX makes for some resistance to today’s reality even though the agent may present more recent comps that suggest that $XXX is no longer competitive. I’ve had many sellers insist on initially listing for a number higher than the comps will justify “just in case”. There have been years when that sometimes worked. We are not currently in one of those periods. Those who hope to sell need to price correctly from the beginning if they want to sell in a reasonable time.
If I eliminate the five listings that priced correctly and sold quickly, the other ten sold listings averaged 79% of original asking price and lingered on the market for an average of 229 days enduring multiple price drops until they finally reached a number the market agreed with. One stubborn seller did eight price drops over 357 days to finally sell for 59% of their original asking price. Another sat on their listing for 429 days and did seven price changes before finally selling for 82% of the original price. I would advise any prospective seller to have their listing agent do a thorough market analysis and to listen to their advice. Buyers are here now and are active. Correctly priced listings are the ones attracting those buyers. Now is the time to act for sellers who want to take advantage of our historically strongest selling season.
“This is the end of the innocence.” _Don Henley 1989
