WAS THAT A DEPRESSION I JUST SAW???...Just what are the current housing figures telling us?
I ask this question because, after a terrific 2nd quarter here in the Hamptons, especially here in Southampton Village, I still feel like we have a long way to go to meet the expectations that the sellers have about prices. The biggest mistake homeowners make is right after a good or even moderately successful season, they start to think: "Maybe I can put my house on
the market now at that price I tried in '07!"
...NO, NO, NO!!! This is not the time to experiment!
We are not that far away from one of the worst housing recessions ever! When the dust settles, we are going to see the real facts about how close we came to a housing "Depression"---We may even find out, afer all is said and done, that the housing downturn we experienced WAS a real "Depression"!
This is the time to repair and correct mistakes made in the housing market during the boom years! We are still in a very dangerous time for this part of the economic recovery. The housing downturn is not going to end so soon....some say 2017; some say even longer than that!
That means, literally, the nation will not see a return to normal for a very long time in real estate and we need to be sharper than ever to make it through.....
WAS THAT A "DEPRESSION" I JUST SAW???
We are still teetering on the brink of a real housing depression; this downturn is not over yet and we need to be at the top of our game! That means no more "going along to get along " about what the value of a seller's property is. We need to be accurate more than ever---they are looking for our guidance, by the way! Even if the sellers seem so confident about what THEY think the house is worth, they are still looking for our professional opinions first and foremost!
PLEASE DO THE FOLLOWING WHEN YOU ARE LOOKING AT PRICING A PROPERTY:
- Keep your comps as close to the house you are pricing as possible; use the same street when you can--go further afield ONLY WHEN THERE ARE NO COMPS ON THE STREET!
- You do not need more than 1 comp in this market; fewer sales makes it twice as hard to price a property. Use the most recent and the closest comp for your pricing.
- If you run into resistance by the homeowner--DO NOT GO ALONG WITH THE SELLERS IDEA OF CORRECT PRICING. HOLD YOUR GROUND AND JUST STOP TALKING.
- Let the homeowner vent; Let them say what they need to say and then put the comp in front of them again to re-state your source. Give them the facts: Sales, DOM, Inventory, Etc.
- Tell the homeowner: "This is not the time to experiment!"
- Give the owner some time to think it over--THEN BOW OUT if they do not come around to your suggested price...You can't lose with that technique!
JUST BOW OUT; NO ONE EVER WINS WITH AN OVERPRICED PROPERTY....ESPECIALLY IN THIS MARKET!!!
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**ALL INFORMATION AND CONTENT IN THIS BLOG IS ORIGINAL TO PAULA I. HATHAWAY. The views expressed herein are my personal views and do not reflect the views of Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Paula I. Hathaway, Senior Broker Associate, Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Southamtpon Village Real Estate Specialist since 1995; Also Specializes in North Sea, Noyac, Water Mill and Bridgehampton, New York
Diamond , Gold and Chairman's Circle Awards; Top Producer since 2005
Click here to see my Hampton's website to see all my listings; please email me or call me for all your real estate needs in Southampton, Bridgehampton and Watermill: http://www.elliman.com/paulahathaway
http://www.hathawayhamptonhomes.com
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