1 – Price it correctly from the Start! – Prior to 2007 waterfront homes in this area were selling very quickly and as a result, prices were going up. Buyers were not afraid to over pay a little as in a couple of year the buyer assumed they would have equity as the result of ever escalating waterfront home prices.
This just is not true any longer!
Today, waterfront homes are selling for about what an informed Realtor would suggest or an appraiser would estimate. However, we are starting to see prices moving up on the Chain as the number for sale is down and the number of buyers is up.
So, if a waterfront seller over prices the house it just sits until the price comes down. And, because it is overpriced, buyers who might be willing to pay a number closer to the property’s true value are being scared away.
Just recently a waterfront property was listed for just a little under $1,000,000 and is now under contract. Over one year ago this same property was listed at $1,500,000. Did this seller scare away other buyer who might have paid closer to $1,000,000 or $1,100,000 but who thought the sellers would never come down to their possible offer number?
Another home on the Waupaca Chain recently took a price drop from $1,799,000 to $1,299 in one step. Yes, a $500,000 price drop in one price reduction!
And, pricing high does not happen at the high end of the scale. Just last month a waterfront property finally sold for just under $250,000 but it had been for sale for almost 9 years at probably, too high of a number.
So, the advice is: ask for a couple of Realtor CMAs (Comparative Market Analysis) to help figure out the waterfront homes most probably selling price and then, price the property just a little higher than this number. If it does not sell in 60 to 90 days lower the price to closer to the CMA number. I always recommend going just a little higher than the CMA number but, then lowering it in 45 to 90 days just to help assure “sellers get the highest possible price.”
Remember: if a waterfront home is not getting offers and waterfront homes in the same price range are selling, “the market is talking and the seller should listen.”
Get this valuable Waterfront Seller Report – 7 Big Mistakes to Avoid when Selliing Waterfront Property this valuable report could earn you Tens or even Hundreds of thousands of dollars. It is not something copied over from Realtor.com – rather, it is custom written based on years of experience selling waterfront properties and, YOU will see real evidence of how a recent waterfron seller may not have gotten their highest possible price because they did not follow some of the points made in this report.
2 – Check out the competition – I cannot tell you the number of times I have talked to waterfront sellers who comment: I see Joe Smith has his waterfront place up for sale at $499,000 and if his is worth that number than mine is worth $600,000.
The message here is obvious: don’t price your based on other listings – price it based at the ones that have sold recently.
Sellers should always check out the competition so they know what other home’s potential buyers are comparing to. But again, price at the CMA number not, at what other sellers are listing at.
Over the years, many waterfront owners have asked for an estimate of the value of their waterfront property. If you sign up, you will not be hounded for a for sale listing but you will receive lots of information about waterfront home values and sales trends. And, we will each hoefully make a new friend!
3 – Ask your Realtors for more than just a list of comparables – You should ask your Realtor for a list of all the homes in your price range that have sold and that are for sale with an analysis of how long they have been or were each on the market. You also want to ask your Realtor for an analysis of how much waterfront houses sold for compared to the tax bill assessed fair market value. Tax assessments are not always a true barometer of a home’s value but it is a number that can be used to make comparisons.
For example, on the Waupaca Chain O’ Lakes the majority of homes sold for under $450,000 are selling for less than the assessed value and homes above $450,000 usually sell for more than the assessed value. And yes, we track every waterfront home sale and compare the selling number to the original listing number and the assessed fair market number so we have a report ready when a savvy seller asks for our input in helping value their waterfront home.
Get reports showing 7 years worth of Waupaca Chain O' Lakes home sales – with complete analysis – Click Here
4 – Compare Realtors’ Marketing Plans – recently an extremely analytical waterfront sellers, of a very high end waterfront home, interviewed four Realtors before deciding which one would plant the for sale sign in their yard. Yes, I was one of the presenters.
This seller asked three key questions:
What analytics did you use when doing your comparative market analysis when deciding on your suggested selling price?
What is your marketing plan, past the normal Realtor “stuff"?
What is your experience selling waterfront homes?
Everyone knows a Realtor, is related to a Realtor or has had a Realtor recommended to them. So, the tip is: don’t just go with the Realtor you know or who has a sign next door. Invite a couple Realtors in and ask them each the above three questions.
And, by the way, we did get to plant the for sale sign in the aforementioned “extremely analytic” waterfront seller’s yard! … True Story …