Unrealistic sellers

[SuiCid3]

http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-villawood-110691173

I've been keeping my eye on this one for a number of weeks.
I noticed it around the start of June when I was on the hunt while it was still in it's open house stages.
Auction was held on the 30th of June.

I originally though it would sell for roughly $500k give or take on the assumption it was rendered brick. Upon closer inspection it was actually rendered blue board. My pricing dropped to roughly $450k.

The RA was in contact with me prior to auction telling me that there was an offer at $440k. I told him I'd wait for auction.
The house was passed in at $430k on the day.
The vendors didn't accept and the bidders wouldn't budge.

I spoke to the RA the day after and he told me they were now willing to let it go for $440k.

They have now relisted it for $469k..

 

[boomtown]

At least they aren't 300 k off the mark.

 

[pennyk]

if the market price is around $440K, then I would also probably list for $465K or so, giving plenty of room to negotiate downwards.
I've sold a few houses in the past couple of months, and most people tend to be offering bids at least $30K below the asking price,no matter how realistic the askng price is.

 

[CharlesNSW]

Do you think some agents encourage sellers to expect unrealistic prices?

 

[matto_]

Do you think some agents encourage sellers to expect unrealistic prices?

Isnt that and element of their job - kind of like marketing their wares. And then they spend the rest of the campaign managing the sellers expectations south.

 

[Andrew_A]

Do you think some agents encourage sellers to expect unrealistic prices?

Also it's often the sellers who want the unrealistic price tried first of all, not fully realizing that it's likely to harm their chances. Would be a rare agent to not take on a listing even in that scenario.

 

[marg4000]

All buyers want to reduce the price somewhat, so no matter how realistically the vendor prices the property the offers will always be lower.
Marg

 

[Andrew_A]

All buyers want to reduce the price somewhat, so no matter how realistically the vendor prices the property the offers will always be lower.
Marg

Except when they are over asking price

 

[dan c]

Also it's often the sellers who want the unrealistic price tried first of all, not fully realizing that it's likely to harm their chances. Would be a rare agent to not take on a listing even in that scenario.

I think that's spot on. The agent takes it on, knowing full well that the seller's price is unachievable, then hoping the seller takes notice of the market.

 

[Ed Barton]

I think that's spot on. The agent takes it on, knowing full well that the seller's price is unachievable, then hoping the seller takes notice of the market.

That's understandable, but what I find amazing is when an agent takes on a listing knowing full well the vendor won't budge.

for example I've been watching one place that's listed about 50k over what comparable places are listed for. i spoke with the first agent who indicated that she would spend another month trying to condition the vendor then dump them. since then it's been on the market for 2 years and about half a dozen different agents, all the time being listed at the same price.

 

[Andrew_A]

That's understandable, but what I find amazing is when an agent takes on a listing knowing full well the vendor won't budge.

for example I've been watching one place that's listed about 50k over what comparable places are listed for. i spoke with the first agent who indicated that she would spend another month trying to condition the vendor then dump them. since then it's been on the market for 2 years and about half a dozen different agents, all the time being listed at the same price.

A row of 4 townhouses, all close to identical, two sell for 381 and 400. When I enquired about the other one on the market the price advise from the agent is.. the seller would like something starting with a '5' in front of it They explained it that the mortgagee sales didn't represent the 'true market'.

 

[Ed Barton]

A row of 4 townhouses, all close to identical, two sell for 381 and 400. When I enquired about the other one on the market the price advise from the agent is.. the seller would like something starting with a '5' in front of it They explained it that the mortgagee sales didn't represent the 'true market'.

you didn't agree with the agent?? is it worth the 381-400 or something in between?

my limited experience of mortgagee auctions in Brisbane is that they sell at or above market value, with buyers tripping over themselves to get a 'bargain'.

 

[Deltaberry]

Lots of unrealistic sellers in this market. But agents lap it up probably because there's no jobs any way.

 

[lizzie]

That's an interesting observation.

I spent a few hours yesterday with my architect talking about the new build and he recommended that, if we want to render, we don't go with brick but rather blueboard because the external brick mass will heat the house up quickly (and keep it hot) in summer, and cool it down quickly (and keep it cold) in winter.

 

[natedog]

Hi lizzie,

If you want a fully rendered home, you should look at HEBEL as an option over brick or blue board.

Better thermal and acoustic insulation than brick..goes up real quick, will save on the labour involved with brickies.

I would have thought that a thin layer of rendered blue board would transfer heat/cold much quicker than brick also!

Cheers
Nathan

 

[BayView]

if the market price is around $440K, then I would also probably list for $465K or so, giving plenty of room to negotiate downwards.

Hands up who has ever paid full asking price for a property?

 

[BayView]

Do you think some agents encourage sellers to expect unrealistic prices?

Only when trying to buy the listing.

Then they encourage them to lower the price to get a sale.

 

[Graemsay]

I spent a few hours yesterday with my architect talking about the new build and he recommended that, if we want to render, we don't go with brick but rather blueboard because the external brick mass will heat the house up quickly (and keep it hot) in summer, and cool it down quickly (and keep it cold) in winter.

Off topic, but I was under the impression that thermal mass was generally beneficial in minimising the extremes of temperature experienced in a building. However, most of what I know is based on a northern European climate, and I believe it's a bit warmer where Lizzie's planning on building.

Here's an article from the Concrete Centre, and another from Wikipedia. In warmer regions, it's necessary to have good ventilation to cool the building at night.

As for optimistic asking prices, take a look at this piece from The Age.

Over here[SUP]*[/SUP] I've noticed that despite a flat or falling housing market (London excepted), properties are frequently being offered at asking prices significantly in excess of what have ever been achieved. And there have been studies showing that owners are somewhat optimistic as to the value of their homes.

[SUP]*[/SUP] Disclaimer: The UK isn't Oz and so I shouldn't draw conclusions from events in the Northern hemisphere.

 

[Jtkumnick]

Do you think some agents encourage sellers to expect unrealistic prices?

Not if you have any idea how real estate works.

Agent paid ONLY on settlement. Anything that prolongs that or reduces chances of it happening will not be done by agents.

It is ALWAYS the owner that overprices a property. Everyone thinks their house is worth more than it is. Its human nature.

 

[Aaron_C]

Not if you have any idea how real estate works.

Agent paid ONLY on settlement. Anything that prolongs that or reduces chances of it happening will not be done by agents.

It is ALWAYS the owner that overprices a property. Everyone thinks their house is worth more than it is. Its human nature.

So true. The agent doesn't care whether he gets $100,000 above reserve or not. All he cares about is a sale of the property, within the general vicinity of the quoted/estimated price so he doesn't lose his credibility and can still brag about it afterwards, but most importantly they want to get paid.