by Sarah Ashton, Broker Associate
Ashton Kirchner Group, Keller Williams Realty
With the inventory for properties at a historic low, and the pool of interested buyers not shrinking any time soon, a real challenge for sellers is properly pricing their property to sell. Historically, listing prices can be determined by recent sales of like properties which can establish a good listing price range. But, is that the case today?
That analysis may set a direction but a full evaluation – there needs to be a bit more analysis of the details of the properties. Not all elevated, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom houses, built in 1989 with 1,900 square feet of air conditioned space are created equal! Updates and special features of the property will play into the pricing analysis. You don’t want to price it so low that you leave money on the table nor do you want to price it so high that the buyers reject it.
In 2020 the average Days on the Market for sold Single Family homes on Sanibel ranged from 120 days to 175 days. In 2021 the averages dropped to a range of 125 to 55 days. Currently, there are 18 single-family homes listed for sale on Sanibel. Removing 2 outliers, the average number of days these have been on the market is 22.5 days. Six have been on the market for over a month and 9 have been on the market for under 2 weeks. We are still seeing multiple offers on many properties. We are also seeing some price decreases on properties that are staying on the market over 30 days. The current norm is to expect a very short time on the market before an acceptable offer is received and accepted.
In recent discussions with several potential sellers, it has been clear there is concern about how long this heated market will continue and are we approaching the end. The answers to both these concerns is “to be determined,” however, if you are considering selling – go in with eyes open to what the pros and cons truly are for your property. If after 10 days on the market there haven’t been showing requests or serious inquiries, a price review may be justified.