Pricing your home higher can be an exciting option if you are a homeowner that is thinking about selling your home. When you are selling, you want to attract buyers that are serious and that appreciate a nicely taken care of home. The value shoppers or the buyers that want to treat your home like it is worth nothing are not the market you are looking for.
When it comes to pricing your home, think about when you yourself go shopping for anything. If you are looking at anything from cars to clothes, you generally assume the principle of “perceived value,” which is that the more expensive item must be better quality. After all, you do not know the exact cost to make any of the products you buy, so you are generally going on the guideline that a higher price is charged for a higher quality product.
That is exactly how you want your home to be viewed. You want your house to be considered the best someone can buy for the price bracket it is in.
By pricing your home at a higher rate than the comps for your home, you are telling buyers that your home is “worth” more than other similar homes. That can attract more of the potential buyers, because a buyer is looking for the best house.
Now that you have listed your home at a higher asking price than its comps, you have to back it up. Some things you should focus on are:
Curb Appeal
Attractive and well thought out landscaping can increase the perceived value of a home, up to 11.4%, according study results in the Journal of Environmental Horticulture.
Keep in mind that the first (real world) experience potential buyers are going to have is when they pull up to your front door. If the home does not inspire them to take a step beyond the driveway, there is little chance that they will want to see what the rest of the house has to offer.
Staging
A well staged home sells faster and for more money than a non-staged home. Not only does this help potential buyers envision the space they will be able to work with, it helps get them in the door in the first place.
Photographing a staged home allows your online listing to stand out from the crowd. Potential buyers are not studying each and every listing they come across so you need to do your best to make your listing stand out. Staging can help make this happen.
Taking the time to hire a professional will result in you getting a higher price and sell your home faster.
Capital Improvements
Things such as making your home more green, remodeling your kitchen, putting a deck on your home, or other improvements that will add function and/or enjoyment for the next homeowner creates more interest in your home and increases the price you can ask for your home.
Extras
Studies have found that offering a home warranty can help a house sell for more money.
The bottom line is that although you cannot pick a number out of the sky, with a little time and some small improvement, you can list your house at a higher listing price than comps and you can sell your house faster as well.