Existing Home Sales - August, 2009

Yesterday the National Association of Realtors reported "existing home sales" dropped 2.7% from July. This is no surprise and should not be a shock. For the next 15-18 months, we will see months of increases along with months of decreases. Meaning, the industry as a whole will not see 12 straight months of non-stop increases. The weak economy, unsteady housing market, weak job prospects, and foreclosure volumes will combine to make the housing market uncertain and a bit unpredictable.

That said, I believe consumers have the opportunity and power to sell their properties if they know and understand their market. Today, more than ever, consumers who sell their home via the For Sale By Owner process have more access to resources, knowledge and information to correctly price their home. In this market, the consumer should monitor home inventory on a weekly basis and follow these basic steps:

• What new homes (similar to your home) decided to sell this week?
• What are the prices of homes similar to mind?
• Visit your competition - see what "selling" features they have.
• Understand how many foreclosures are listed in your neighborhood (this will likely lower final sales prices but check the price of these properties too.
  
• Finally, find out what homes similar to yours, sold for in the past month or two.
• Note: Every consumer has access to this information via the internet - it is freedom of information and quite empowering.
  

In this market, selling For Sale By Owner gives you and extra 6% of pricing power against your competition. Example: If you competition is listed at $300k, price your home at $295k. Your competitor who is using an agents will only take home $282k ($300 - $18k in commissions) so you come out way ahead.

Build confidence & empower yourself -