The spring always brings hope that our market will begin to move quicker. It has helped. Let’s look at some numbers. Over the last four months, in the City of Suffolk 314 homes sold. Currently there are 798 homes listed. This indicates that about 10% of the listings are selling each month. Not a stellar amount. We would like to see about 40% selling. Actually, I personally would like to see 100% selling, but that has not happened since I first got into the business in 1973 when we had six houses to sell and they all sold in thirty days. That’s not going to happen for a while. What this continues to tell us is that a seller has to understand the market numbers for sales, listings, absorption rate and cost of money to analyze where their “selling zone” really is. I can tell you it is in the bottom 12-18% of your competition in almost all cases. Take a look at the attached chart from REIN MLS for more info. Remember, Lee and Harry Cross can sell your house!
One point that needs to be noted in this market is that homes are selling very close to their list price. Why? Because the homes that are selling are in the bottom of the price range for their competition or in their possible “selling zone”. These home prices have been “pre-negotiated” to be very competitive and to attract possible buyers. The best strategy is to price it well to be part of the possible absorption rate.
