The real estate market in Central New Jersey is deep in a re-alignment.  Some prefer to call it a recession, some a burst bubble.  In a nutshell, the number of properties for sale (inventory) is double what it was a year ago, and the number of sales made is down about 10%.  This is difficult for many sellers, and yet, many buyers have failed to take advantage of this situation, especially strange in light of the low mortgage interest rates and the broad choices available in housing. 

We have a different market from that of 2000-2005.

But there is one reality that is common both to today’s market, and to that of more than a year ago – competition. 

When we experienced the “sellers market” of the past several years, buyers competed for homes.  They prepared themselves for the competition by obtaining pre-approvals for mortgages, putting together large amounts of cash as initial deposits, even having their agent prepare a description of their family, etc.  They jumped in the car when their agent notified them of a new listing. These buyers were competing against similarly-prepared buyers for a limited number of homes that were on the market, and the shortage of supply and the high demand drove prices ever higher.  It was not unusual to have homes sell for many thousands of dollars over their list price.  Often, the sale price bore little resemblance to the sale price of the last “comparable” home that sold.

We’re not in that market any longer, but competition is still the name of the game. 

This time, it is the sellers who are competing for the attention of the buyers.  Any seller who believes that buyers will buy her home before viewing others – often many others - is living in a dream world – a dream that could become a nightmare. 

Sellers must prepare their home for sale as they would detail their car if they wanted to sell it.  “Q-tip” clean is a phrase that is often applied to this process.  It means scrubbing, painting, dusting, polishing and all the other chores that go into making a house a model home.  No dust bunnies.  No dirty grout.  No dirty windows.  You get the picture. 

Now, once you have created a masterpiece of sparkle and shine, the house must be priced correctly.  Don’t think that what the last home sold for is the price that yours will bring.  That’s the wrong measure.  Remember the word “competition?”  It is the competition, not the “comparables” that will determine what your home sells for.  Buyers want perfect condition for the perfect price.  It’s as simple as that.  If you’re priced $25,000 over the same homes in the same condition (or better), you’re toast.  And, if you don’t adjust that price within three weeks of listing, you may never catch up with the market.

Not fair, right?  That’s sort of how the buyers have felt for the last several years when they paid mega-bucks over the list price.