In order to help you choose the most appropriate pricing strategy and to estimate the market value of your home, your agent will compare its location, condition, and layout relative to its closest competition and to the most recently sold homes. Your agent will create a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) for your home, a report analyzing the homes that are currently on the market (Actives), that are currently under contract (Pendings), and those that have most recently closed (Solds).

The key to determining the most accurate pricing strategy is in your agent's analysis and interpretation of the data. The CMA will show you results for homes that have not yet sold (Actives), those that have gone under contract but not closed, thus no final sale price is known, and the closed sales where the final price was determined when the home went under contract. Be aware, the final sale price could have been determined 2-3 moths prior to closing. When looking at closed sales, you may be looking at some sales that closed 5-6 months earlier and which went under agreement 2 months prior to that. Thus, the price of that home may have been determined 7-8 months ago. This may no longer be indicative of the price you should expect on your home. Again, the accuracy is in your agent's interpretation of the data.

The CMA will also provide you information on how long it took those properties to sell. Days on Market (DOM) is usually a good barometer of how closely a property sold relative to its listed price. The lower a home's days on market, on average, the higher price you should expect relative to its listed price. You and your agent should consider the results of the CMA and the average days on market relative to your needs in determining the pricing strategy you will employ when marketing your home for sale.

Some factors to consider in your pricing strategy:

• Similar sized homes in your neighborhood
• Supply and demand
• Interest rates
• Location
• Condition
• Layout

Some qualities that you may be surprised to know DO NOT factor into the market value of your home:

• The cost of renovations or upgrades you put in.
• The price you need to get
• What another agent, neighbor, family member or friend told you (without substantiating through a CMA)
• The price you want to get
• The price you paid plus any published growth factor.

Dangers of Over Pricing - An asking price that is beyond market range can adversely affect the marketing of a property:

• Fewer buyers are attracted, and fewer offers received.
• Marketing time is prolonged, and initial marketing momentum is lost.
• The property attracts 'lookers' and helps competing houses sell
• If a property sells above the true market value, it may not appraise, and the buyer may not be able to secure a loan.
• The property may eventually sell below market value.