Magic, fairies and pixie dust... While interesting subject matter for children's books and works of classic fiction, these ingredients combine to form potential disaster when selling your home. If the pricing strategy you're hearing from a prospective real estate agent isn't backed by sound judgment, compelling evidence of competency and preparation, and a dose of common sense... get out your pixie dust detector. Fast!
Every seller deserves to get the most that they can for their home. And a good professional Realtor® can ( and should ) do a lot to help you in all phases of the process from the initial consultation, to prioritizing repairs & staging, identification of unique selling propositions, aggressive marketing & showing, advance preparation for buyer inquiries, negotiation, etc. But what they absolutely cannot do is influence the underlying value of a property.
The ( understandable ) urge to work with the agent that "values" your home the highest is the single biggest risk that sellers face. But choosing your Realtor on the basis of magic, fairies and pixie dust... can be a very frustrating and expensive mistake. Consider the following.
A recently built townhome was listed for ( in our professional opinion ) approximately $50K more than it's high-end prospective value ( assuming proper presentation ). The home is located across the street from new construction which has similar square footage, similar views and similar amenities. The new builds have nicer finishes, more parking and are, well... new ( though not yet listed quite yet ). Thorough market analysis bears out that this home is clearly overpriced. And a simple inquiry from one professional Realtor to another verifies that the asking price on these new builds will be from $25 - $75K less than the asking price of the subject home.
The listing came out quickly with little to no preparation ( no cleaning, no repairs, no staging ). The listing contains limited remarks and unflattering amateur photos that show a dark cluttered house. There is no marketing to speak of.
So what is in store for this seller?
It is typically the least prepared, least professional agent that relies on the tantalizing lure of magic, fairies and pixie dust to capture a listing. But when the magic is gone, the unsold home remains. It becomes a shop-worn overpriced listing used by other Realtors as a "bad example" for their prospective buyers, a tool for sealing the deal on the new builds across the street...
How are you choosing your Realtor? If you're not listening for sound judgment, compelling evidence of competency and preparation and a dose of common sense... you might be falling prey to the fiction of magic, fairies and pixie dust.