“I need to sell my house fast in Southern California. What should I do?”
If you’ve been asking yourself this question, here’s our advice: You need to set a fair asking price, and you need to do this as soon as possible!
It may come as a surprise, but overpricing can actually prevent you from making a sale. Even in a hot seller’s market, jacking up the price of your SoCal home could cause it to stay on the market for an undesirable period of time.
So if you’re hoping to sell a house fast in Southern California with minimal fuss, setting the right price needs to be a top priority.
Here’s what could happen if you overprice the property:
Takes Much Longer To Sell
The ideal course of events is you sell the property soon after listing it. Timing is a very important factor in real estate transactions, and if you overprice your home, it could stay on the market for months, possibly even years!
Most buyers are wary of homes that have been on the market for a long time; they assume that something’s wrong, since nobody else was willing to make an offer.
You’ll Get Many Low-Ball Offers
The best time to get a competitive offer on your home is within the first few weeks of listing. The longer your home sits on the market, the more buyers will get suspicious. Plus, buyers may make low-ball offers when they see your home has been sitting a while, assuming you’ll take whatever you can get.
Might Lead To Appraisal Troubles
Even if you’re fortunate enough to find a buyer who’s willing to buy your overpriced property, you’ll still need to get a thorough appraisal. The lender who’s backing the buyer will demand this.
A home appraiser considers several factors, including active listings, comps, and recently closed sales to determine whether or not your property is priced properly.
If they find it to be overpriced, the lender will likely deny the buyer’s mortgage application.
In the end, when you overprice your home, you make it difficult for the buyer’s mortgage to go through, which can delay or sabotage the sale.
Creates A Favorable Situation For Your Competitors
If your home is overpriced relative to other listings in your area, potential buyers will likely overlook your home and choose other similarly sized properties in the neighborhood.
When buyers have to choose between two similar properties, almost always they choose the less expensive one.
Reduce The Probability Of A Bidding War
A fairly-priced home is likely to get more attention. It’ll capture the interest of several buyers, so you’re more likely to get multiple offers after just a few weeks of listing.
At this point, a bidding war can break out, driving up your home’s price. But an overpriced home generates less interest and pretty much precludes bidding wars.
In this case, you’ll have to reduce the asking price to get more offers. But don’t put it too low, since buyers might suspect something is wrong with the property.
Get A Free Offer Now
Pricing your home right is the first step to achieving a smooth and hassle-free sale. To see what the current value of your home is, connect with trusted cash home buyers in Southern California, like Cash-4-Homes.
Fill out this form or call us at (323) 519-6935 to share a few details about your home and get a free cash offer within 24 hours. You can use this value as a starting point when pricing your home.