What do sushi and real estate listings have in common?The answer: Neither ages well. In Japan you can buy sushi in Wal-Mart. Japanese consumers are very demanding about the quality of their sushi, and although we're talking about a decidedly mass market discount vendor such as Wal-Mart, high expectations remain. Throughout the day the price of sushi in Wal-Mart is systematically reduced every few hours as the freshness of the fish fades. After a period of time, what hasn't been sold that day is tossed in the garbage. Everyone wants the freshest fish. It seems reasonable to me.
Who wants what everyone else has passed on?
Inevitably one of first questions buyers ask is "How long has it been on the market?" This question is so important that I am going to repeat it in big bold type:
"How long has it been on the market?"
Sellers, this is a seminal moment in the sale of your home. It has a tangible impact on the value of your property. Really, it does. Time on the market directly affects the amount of money you will receive for the sale, (or rental), of your property. Let's analyze the powerful fundamental psychological forces at work and how they affect the purchase decision.
The subconscious impulse to ask the question basically has it's root in either fear or aggressiveness. The fear motivation stems from the comfort we all feel to varying degrees from being like everyone else; belonging to a nice safe group. Real estate transactions are among the largest investments/expenditures one usually makes in a lifetime, and there's a palpable fear of being taken, cheated or swindled. Asking how long it's been for sale is akin to asking "Is this safe?". If months have gone by and hordes of presumably intelligent buyers just like me have passed on the property, there must be something wrong with it. Do I want to be the fool that gets hoodwinked into buying a lemon? This trepidation is not simply a matter of concern over money spent unwisely, it is in a very large part a basal fear of not conforming to the group -- of announcing ones' commitment to an "unpopular" or flat out bad decision.
The question is more literal when coming from aggressive buyers. They're driven to varying degrees by the desire to reduce the asking price. Note that I said "reduce the asking price" and not "save money". There's a subtle difference. Ironically, for those buyers who exhibit extremely aggressive behavior the quest to "get a great deal" often reaches the level of obsession, and they will never actually buy.
MORAL:
If the answer to the question "How long has it been on the market?" is some variation of "a long time" it doesn't bode well for the seller. Buyers will either walk away from tainted goods, or they will feel they have the superior position when it comes to negotiating price.
Reach me at michael.sussilleaux@gmail.com
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