There's a new breed of agent coming to town, sure to be appearing in your neighborhood soon.
She's the "Overpriced Listing Specialist", and she always comes to town when the real estate market gets hot.
She understands that prices are going up and sellers are getting greedy. She doesn't really care about marketing, ensuring a home is salable or even getting the best price for a home. She only knows how to get listings.
"I'm sure you've heard the market is pretty hot right now, Mr. Seller", she says. "What price do you want for you home?"
"Wow," says Mr. Seller. "All the other agents we talked to came in here with comps, historical information, market data, and they even talked about - what's the name of that guy who comes in with a clipboard and measures your rooms - ah yes, the appraiser. You mean I can just pick my price?"
"You sure can, Mr. Seller. Sign here."
The Overpriced Listing Specialist is getting traction in this market. She always does.
When homes listed for 15% more than they're worth don't sell, she blames the market. She tells Mr. Seller to be patient. Or sometimes she simply doesn't answer her phone at all.
After all, she has a signed listing contract.
In Colorado, we don't have enough homes to sell. Inventory is incredibly low and, yes, prices are most definitely rising.
But none of it matters if you are priced so delusionally high that when the first wave of buyers comes storming through, they thumb their nose at your home and move on... "That price is ridiculous."
The problem Mr. Seller will soon encounter is that, after the first 15 to 21 days, the showings are going to start to dry up. The parade of motivated, "want-it-now" buyers is over. And suddenly, your home is getting a little bit stale.
You may still get a good price, but you may not. You may sit on the market for months, driven out of your home for showing after showing after showing until you dread the sound of your own phone ringing.
The time of maximum leverage for sellers is during the first 10 to 15 days on the market. During this time, the showings are coming fast and furious, the buyers are motivated and they are ready to write strong, "pre-emptive" offers to try and lock up your home before the weekend traffic comes pouring through.
Those are good conditions to sell into.
I would look closely at the sales history of the Overpriced Listing Specialist. "How many days on market does it take your listings to sell?"
Then ask for MLS printouts to prove it.
I have always said there are certain formulas in real estate that will yield the best results. That includes strategies tailored for buyers, and approaches that work best for sellers.
If your goal is to sell your home in a reasonable period of time for the best price possible, you will probably pursue a formula that involves lots of cleaning, lots of decluttering, some tactical improvements like paint and carpet, and you'll look for ways to stage the home in ways that draw attention to its best features.
If your goal is to impress yourself by listing your home higher than anyone else in your ZIP code, then no worries... the Overpriced Listing Specialist is coming to your neighborhood soon.
