Our early 2023 State of The Market is now available. Download now for a comprehensive look at the data and statistics driving the Central Oregon real estate market, and how they affect your buying and selling goals.
A savvy seller who wishes to maximize the value of a real estate asset would do well to consider the following when embarking on the selling process. Good news, we can help with each of these.
Price accurately at launch — Gone are the days of extrapolating wildly from your neighbor’s sale a few months back and it is more important than ever to launch with the appropriate price out of the gate. Some recent trends have shown that sellers have actually started recognizing this as we saw the number and size of price reductions both decrease to close out 2022.
Ensure your home is in top condition — Homes that are clean, well-kept, and presented with care sell faster and for more money than homes with deferred maintenance. Take the time to take care of those lingering projects, enhance the curb appeal, or declutter inside. None of these have to be overwhelmingly costly and have a huge impact on the feel of a house. Most buyers purchase based on emotion and feel, so let’s get the buyers feeling at home even before they enter.
Prepare for time on market — It will remove a lot of the stress and headache of selling if you go into it with the right mindset. Simply put, selling in a day is no longer the norm. The average Days on Market in Bend is now closer to historical averages and in excess of one month (see Chart C). The good news is that when you do a number of things on this list, your home can still sell in a reasonable timeframe. In fact, despite the strong shift in the market last year, about 26% of Bend homes in Q4, 2022 sold in less than a week.
Carefully select your representation — A sign in the ground, some photos, and a listing in the MLS simply doesn’t cut it anymore. The sale of your biggest asset requires a plan in place and a team to execute it. To ensure you have the right agent to achieve your goals, begin by asking more about how they plan to sell your home than simply the price at which they plan to list it. Questions such as: “What is the marketing plan for my home, both before and after launch?”, “How do you plan to reach out-of-town buyers?”, “What can you tell me about your broker-to-broker network?”, and “What are your recent results in selling homes like mine?” are all excellent conversation starters. It makes sense to meet with a few agents and select the one that knows how to deliver results.