Do Boise Real Estate Agents Offer The Best Advice?
The scariest scenario for any homeowner in today’s market is to be left without equity, after trying to sell their home for an extended period of time. This is all to frequently how that happens. An investor friend decides to put his Boise real estate on the MLS with a real estate agent. As is often the case, the listing agent comes back with a Comparative Market Analysis which indicates the value of home to be around $250,000, then the owner decides that he wants to list the home for about $25,000 more to start off, at $275,000.
Due to over-pricing, the home stays on the market with no offer or hope to sell it. During the same period of time, the home down the road sells for the correct market price of $250,000. By the end of the 6 month listing agreement the seller decides the Realtor did not do a great job of marketing the home and drops the listing.
The seller hires a new agent, and lists the house for $250,000. With recent CMA in hand, the new listing agent puts the home on the MLS for $250,000, still $25,000 above the depreciating market value. With that rate of depreciation, the current price simply means the home will sit on the market even longer. Another 6 months goes by and nary an offer is brought.
The game of Musical Agents takes another turn, and a new listing agent is brought in, bringing his own marketing angle. Having gone through 3 listing agents without an acceptable offer on the home, the owner agrees to lower the price to $225,000. This time, the seller lists the home at $225,000. The market depreciation has drained his equity and his homes value is now about $200,000.
This circle goes on and on until the homeowner runs out of all of their equity. The problem is not with a bad agent who listed the Boise real estate, nor is it because the market is bad. The problem is a bad seller. Had the home been listed for $250,000 from the start, it would have sold. Boise real estate has been depreciating on a weekly basis, so letting any listing sit on the market at a steady price is disastrous for the seller, regardless of how much they have put into it.
Given that Realtors and Appraisers pull their comps from the same database of listings, any listing agents CMA is reliable, assuming it is accurately done. If your Realtors CMA says that the listing price should be a specific amount, you can also expect that the banks appraiser will also conclude that.
You can remedy all of this with this easy solution. Once the homeowner has indicated they are not willing to follow your professional opinion relating to the house, accepting the listing would be a big mistake. Unless you have the idea of needing a place to park your real estate sign, taking a Boise real estate listing like this one is a very bad idea and may cost you valuable resources. For a seller, if you think your Realtor’s analysis of your home is inaccurate, it might be a good idea to have a formal appraisal done on the property. It’s extremely rare for someone to be able to sell a home for more than the appraised value because lenders will not write a loan for more than a home is worth.
There are lots of appraisal companies for Boise real estate, and the cost is generally a couple hundred dollars. It’s a small price to pay in order to be able to sell your home for $250,000 now rather than waiting months or years to find out the home has lost $100,000 in value. At the end of the day it just doesn’t make sense for sellers or agents to list properties for more than they are actually worth. Any homeowner wants to make as much as possible on the sale of their home, but disregarding the professional advice a Realtor offers is a surefire way to limit your options and possibly lose your home.
The author enjoys writing articles about Boise real estate. Click on the above link to learn more about that topic!