All agents are equal, right?

No.  Not really.  Not at all.
Some of us will take an overpriced listing just to have one, or because the Seller’s bullied us in to too high of a price for their home.  Or maybe some are just not very good at crunching numbers, and have difficulty determining a price, especially in this market.

I drove by a listing and it caught my eye.  I grabbed the address and checked it out at home.  JAW DROPPED.
Let me paint you a picture… It’s an old home. Less than 900 square feet, on a lot shy of 5000 square feet. Also, on a disaster response route, which doesn’t help it’s value (note: I also live on a disaster response route, but have always lived on a busy street and traffic noise doesn’t bother me). Minimal updates.  No pictures online.
It was sold last year when the market was very hot and prices at an all time high for $375,000…
Yet their asking price is $507,000!!!

Yes, they feel that their home (which they bought in a Seller’s Market) has increased in value by 35% when sales on detached homes are down 66.7% since last year (see the graph in last week’s Market Update Post).
Simple supply and demand, as well as the lack of updates done to this home tell me that there is no point in viewing said home because either the agent or the Sellers are out to lunch.

I’d be lying if I said that I have never taken an overpriced listing in this business.  But I can tell you that I have regretted every single one.  It is a waste of everyone’s time and energy.
So, even though you may not like what we have to say when we suggest a price for your house… we at least promise to be honest, and not just give you some inflated dream number to get your signature.  Instead we’ll give you our game plan to get your home sold for top dollar instead of giving you a bigger number than another agent.

-Monique