| We all know the housing market has been a dismal disaster recently. But what if you're trying to sell your home in this frigid market? How do you make your home stand out from the rest of the inventory? The trick is to price your home appropriately and competitively. Read more to find out how. Since Americans are notorious for always buying something, it's a good idea to incorporate common retailer price tricks into pricing your home in order to grab buyers' attention. If you are trying to sell your property, consider using these home pricing tricks for yourself. 1. In order to set the right price, scope out your competition first. Here's where a little real-estate research can come in handy. Ask yourself these questions: What are other homes in your neighborhood selling for? How long have they been on the market? Etc. Survey the supply and demand within your neighborhood to consider whether to price your home above or below the market value. In a slow or cold market, as is most of today's markets, pricing your home lower than your competitors can essentially generate more offers, thereby driving the price higher. On the other hand, in a hot market you have the benefit of higher demand with less competitor inventory. As a result, you can list your home slightly higher than the market value. However, don't go too high or you risk buyers going into "sticker shock". 2. Take a tip from discount retailers like Wal-Mart to grab the attention of any potential buyers. Take, for example, $9.99 vs. $10.00. While we all know there is only a penny difference between the two, the $9.99 price just seems like a better deal! Why? Because when people see a price, they assess and judge within a fraction of a second whether it is a good or bad deal. And, since we read from left to right, the first number receives the most focus. Therefore, a home listing for $199,999 will generate more attention then $200,000 because people will perceive $199,999 to be a better deal. Retailers have been using this proven strategy for a long time, make it work for you. 3. Another pricing trick you can take from retailers is the concept of round vs. exact numbers. Let's imagine, for example, that you are selling a home worth a little under $300,000. According to retailers, setting a price at a rounded $295,000 indicates quality and willingness to negotiate, while an exact number, like $294,626 conveys a bargain price. This is because we tend to associate precise prices with cheaper goods. An exact number also sends the message to a buyer that you have put a ton of consideration into the price, hence its exactitude. However, if you want to give off the impression of quality, go for the nicely rounded (up) price. 4. The recent mortgage debacle has cause mortgage lenders to tighten their standards so it has become nearly impossible to obtain a traditional mortgage. As a result, the buyer, who's made an offer on your home, may not qualify for a traditional home loan. How can you avoid this from happening? The trick here is to offer several different financing options. Owner financing, for instance, can widen the appeal and pool of potential buyers for your home. Owner financing, also called seller financing or subject-to loans, is a payment agreement where the owner acts as the lender/landlord for the buyer (who takes over the existing mortgage) until they can qualify for a bank loan. For more information about investors who specialize in owner financing, check out Butterflylister.com. 5. Finally, the last home pricing trick to consider is slashing the price. When a home has been on the market too long and very few offers have been made, the logical option is to reduce the price of the home. But by how much? The trick here is to reduce the price by a nice, easy-to-calculate number. Suppose your initial asking price was $294,626. If you cut the price to $275,049, many people will perceive this as only a small reduction. However, if you keep the computation simple, let's say you reduced to $274,626, people can easily calculate their savings. This adverse perception can occur if you make calculations difficult and will lead people to think there is only a small difference in price. Therefore, keep reduced prices simple and easy to calculate. (Posted by: K. Skowronski)
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