The Vail Daily reported today another record sales month for August but what does that mean?

Today’s Vail Daily reported "Real estate rockets".  If one just reads the headline, one would think the market is on fire and prices are heading through the roof.  Must be a good time to list your home and make a killing.  Not so.  In fact, the market is flooded right now with overpriced listings which is why the number of sales is slowing.  Record sales (dollars) does not equate to record number of property sales. 

 What sellers don’t realize is the fact that it is actually a buyers market due to the amount of real estate currently on the market.

Seller’s need to be counseled on how to list and market their property if they are in fact a seller.  In my world, you are either a "lister" or you are a "seller".

A "lister" is someone who puts their property on the market at a price that is above the going market in hopes some fool will come along a pay their price.  A "seller" is someone who has listed their property at market or one or two points below the market. 

"Listers" are also emotionally attached to their property and believe if the neighbor got x for their property, then the "lister’s" property has to be worth x plus because thier home is a better home.  Doesn’t work that way.

What "listers" fail to understand is buyers are not fools and infact are students of the market.  A large percentage of buyers in the market are second home buyers.  They treat a real estate purchase in the Vail Valley the same way they would buy stock.  That is, they do not buy a stock at a future value, they will not buy real estate at a future value.  In fact if a home is listed more than one or two points above market, serious buyers won’t even look at it. Consequently we have a saturated market of over priced homes. 

"Listers" also fail to understand that they are competing with lots of other homes and in the present market the only way their listing will compete is if it is priced attractively enough to catch the interest of a buyer.  The way to attract attention is to list the home at market or one or two points below.  When a home is listed at or below market the owner will in all likelihood see immediate action by one or more buyers which can translate into a bidding war with the end result being a contract for more than the property listed for. 

jnichols@gatewayland.com 

by appointment

Gateway Land and Development

970-926-6777

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