Ok. You want to list your home for sale and you think your place is worth $500,000 and the Realtor that just interviewed for the job said no the house is worth $450,000. I hear it all the time from home sellers here in Parker, Colorado.

Be realistic and you will sell your property faster and for more money.

If you are a home seller you need to be very smart when you are pricing your home for sale in Parker, Colorado. Buyers are market savvy and they know values. Many buyers start their home search many months in advance on the internet so they have learned your neighborhood values even better than most of the sellers living in the neighborhood.

Remember this.

1. Over pricing your home initially will cost you more money in the long run. Add up your holding costs and look at what it is costing you.

2. Homes that sit on the market for a long time sell for less money than homes that sell quickly.

3. The majority of homes that are listed for sale end up NOT selling. They fail to sell.

4. The majority of homes listed for sale are so over priced they receive only a few early showings then sit on the market for months and months or even a year.

5. Your first offer is generally your best offer. So make the best of it and work hard to get the first contract to closing.

Every seller in every town across America thinks their house, which is just like the house down the street, is worth more. Guess what? Most likely it isn’t. Value and price for your home is determined by other SOLD homes in your area that are the same or close to the same in size and with very similar features such as # of bedrooms and # of bathrooms.

• Generally speaking comparable home sizes should be within 15 percent of each other.

• Run from the Realtor that promises to sell your house at a price you believe to be too high. I know it’s hard to undo the thoughts of your house selling at a really high price like they promised but chances are they are trying to buy the listing from you. Buying a listing is when a Realtor comes in and promises to sell your house at an inflated price to the rest of the sold homes in the neighborhood. When the house hasn’t sold in 3 months they come back to you and start asking for huge price reductions. Bottom line. Price it right from the start.

• Market Value in Parker, Colorado is what a ready willing and able buyer is willing to pay for a house and what a ready willing and able seller is willing to take for a house.

• Most home appraisers and Realtors like to use fresh comparables that have sold in the last 1 to 3 months if possible. We can use homes that sold as far back as nine months.

• Please don’t look at the price your neighbor has his home listed for. That is not the value of your property. I can ask $500,000 for my 2001 Toyota 4Runner but it doesn’t mean it’s worth that or anyone will ever pay me that price for it.

• The value of your Parker, Colorado real estate isn’t what your neighbor told you he sold his house for just before he jumped onto the moving truck and rode out of town. GUESS WHAT! Your neighbors lie to you about their real sale price most of the time.

• Hire a Realtor with experience to help you find the real market value and list your home for sale accordingly. Don’t waste your time, the buyer’s time and your Realtor’s time by pricing your home too high.

Don’t waste your time by listing your house for an unrealistic selling price. Buyers don’t like it, Realtors don’t like it and believe it or not your neighbors don’t like to see your house up for sale for a lengthy period of time. It makes them nervous to see your house sit for months. Be realistic and you will sell the property faster and for more MONEY.Guaranteed!

Steven Beam is a local Parker, Colorado real estate broker.