You will lose the excitement that a new listing generates. REALTORS are working with buyers who have seen what is currently on the market and are waiting for something new to be listed. Therefore, the most activity will take place in the first 30 days of a listing. Your home will probably receive its highest and best offers during this time. After that initial period, most of the people to look at your home will be new buyers in the marketplace just shopping and starting to kick tires, undecided if they are ready to buy.
You can lose the most qualified prospects! Buyers will not just “make an offer” because they probably will never see your property. They will view the properties that are priced within their purchase power range, knowing that they cannot afford anything above their price range. And for the buyers who are in your price range, they are viewing homes more accurately priced and comparing them against yours…well no competition. You lost those qualified prospects.
Overpricing helps sell other, more competitively priced homes first. Your home may be used to demonstrate the good value of other properties. Your objective should be to enter the market in a position that will attract prospects, not drive them away.
Your home may become stale on the market. Prospects may wonder why it has been on the market so long, or if something is wrong with the property, even after you lower the price. You may even have to settle for less than market value. A house takes on a reputation surprisingly fast, so don’t wear out your welcome on the market.
You lose a strong negotiating position when your house is on the market a long time, both financially and mentally. Prospects will not “rush” to make an offer on an overpriced property, and you may feel compelled to accept less when they finally do.
If you do get an offer, the contract may fall through because of appraisal problems. The lender must justify the price to the market.
