Expert: Lisa Webber - 11/19/2009

Question
Hi,
My siblings and I are trying to sell my parents house (they have both passed away). It has been on the market since February and we haven't had many showings and no offers. We have lowered the price 5 times. Other homes have sold in the neighborhood which is very nice and located on the western border of Baltimore City. The house was built in 1954 and hasn't been recently updated, but has been well maintained. We just had the basement professionally waterproofed and put in a new furnace and water heater. We're wondering if we should take it off the market for a few months and relist it in the spring. Then, the number of days on the market would start over and our price history would be erased. Do you think this is a good strategy? Any other suggestions?
Thanks,
Nancy

Answer
It's hard to say whether that is a good strategy or not as there are two ways to look at it.  If the house has been on the market for 9 months and has had a lot of showings but no offers, that pretty much means that the price is not bad for the neighborhood as you are getting lookers, but it is priced high for the condition.  Other homes may be in better condition for the same price so buyers are making offers on those homes instead. Without seeing the house it is hard for me to say what the asking price should be, but if the house is listed even 5% too high, buyers may choose another home instead.  First time buyers tend to be especially choosy as far as condition of the home and "newness" and if the home needs a lot of updating, you may need to adjust the price down farther than you'd like in order to bring someone in who will accept it as is.

Between now and January you will have the fewest amount of potential buyers but those buyers will be motivated if they are wanting to move during the holidays.  I don't know how much time on market matters in this recent market.  What I normally tell my buyers is if they see a house that has been available for awhile and hasn't had an offer, it just means the sellers haven't adjusted for the current market.  I have seen time and time again where a seller will have a house listed for a long time and once it gets in the price range it should be in, they will get an offer and sometimes will get multiple offers within a few days depending upon how desirable the neighborhood is.  

A wildcard that we have this year is the extended buyers tax credit.  Buyers have to have a home under contract by April 30, 2010 in order to take advantage of this tax credit.  I believe that will make the spring selling season start sooner this year, most likely right after the holidays.  The weather in January/February makes a difference as well.  If we have nice weather, that will also make the spring season begin sooner.  Some people make the mistake of waiting until May to list their house for sale but that is really late and they have already missed a couple months of potential buyers.