If It Won't Appraise, You Might Have To Stay!

This last week has been tough on two of my sellers. 

Two contracts, one on a home in Auburn and one in Lawrenceville. Both in areas of Gwinnett County that are rebounding both in number of sales and values. But this past week these two homes didn't appraise for the contract price. This is really tough when you have a buyer that agrees to pay what the seller wants and needs to sell the house, and the appraiser has a different idea. I know how this works, the comps have to support the value and in both cases they did, just not in those particular subdivisions.

So why am I telling you this?

I'm hoping to help you as a seller understand how the market works when it comes to appraised value. Bottom line, the appraiser holds the key. If he/she can't support the contract price with comps, it's no deal. That's why it's so important to price it correctly to begin with. Listen to your Realtor because that's what they're trained to do. You might be asking why the two deals I mentioned above weren't priced correctly. Well I felt confident they were. The comps used to price the homes were just outside the neighborhoods they were listed in but were almost the same exact home as the subjects. Ultimately the appraiser will use the in-neighborhood comps before going outside the neighborhood even if those comps aren't as close to the subject's style, size etc. The type of loan the buyer is getting will also dictate how "loose" the appraiser can be with the comps. FHA will be more strict than a conventional. The lender also has veto power. 

Price it well, not with "a little room to wiggle"

It's hard to explain this strategy to most people because everyone thinks you need room to negotiate. The fact is, setting your price high, even a little bit, will lead to situations like I explained above. The seller prices $10k over the suggested price, the buyer comes in and agrees to a price somewhere in that range between suggested and $10k over and the appraiser says I don't think so. And unless the seller can meet the appraised value, the deal is dead. Yes, that is an option but it brings me to the point with all this.....why price it high when you can price it to sell and be done with it? 

Our goal is the same, sell the house quickly for the most money

When you hire me, my goal is to sell your home for the most money in the least amount of time. If we meet and you don't like my plan, you can talk to other agents sure. But are you accomplishing anything by listing with someone that just says yes? Think about it this way, if you went to the doctor and told him you have a cold and you need some antibiotics and he just says...."ok". Do you really feel comfortable with his ability to cure you? Probably not. So listen to your Realtor. 

www.SteveSellsGwinnett.com Steve Rider, CDPE Realtor with Keller Williams Lanier Partners in Braselton Georgia. Covering Barrow, Jackson, Gwinnett and Hall Counties in Northeast Georgia. If you're looking for real estate in Gwinnett County please contact me at 404 663 7063 or steverider1@gmail.com.