Bizzaro World! Price lower to sell higher!
40% RISE IN GLENCOE’S INVENTORY! I can just see that headline in a newspaper or a social media post to grab your attention. While true, there is a lot more to it than just more homes.
First, we are still near historic record low inventory levels. Second, I am not suggesting that the Glencoe seller's market is in trouble, or that the market is turning in favor of buyers. Rather, it is more about the psychology of the market right now and the great importance of proper pricing that we have been preaching for some time now.
With the 12-month rolling average for sales price to list price sitting around 104%, buyers are expecting most new listings to sell well over asking. With this in mind, they are hesitant to make offers on properties that have placed a “make me move” list price on the home. In my opinion, that price can sometimes even be listing where the property should end up selling.
For instance, if a home should sell around $2.2mm according to recent comps, the thought to list the home at $2.299 makes sense in the mind of sellers, as they believe buyers will want to offer less than asking and try and negotiate. However, the psychology of buyers in the current market says, wait, if they are asking $2.299, they expect to get $2.40 - $2.55. I am going to wait and see if they have to reduce price before I offer. When this happens, that house sits on the market and has to drop price, possibly multiple times, ultimately receiving less than they should have. However, if the seller were to strategically price that house around $1.99mm, they will likely get numerous showings and multiple offers driving the price up to the $2.2m range. Sellers have even been able to negotiate a post-closing possession of the property for 1 or 2 months with free rent when multiple offers are involved.
We fully appreciate that this thinking is upside down for sellers, and that is exactly why we are here to help everyone understand the intricacies of this market. Our clients have achieved great success with our strategic marketing and pricing plans and have been extremely happy with the results!
It is worthy to note that the buildup of inventory seems to be contained to overpriced homes in Glencoe in the $2.2-$2.9mm price range, typically 25+ years old and need extensive updating and replacement of major mechanicals and roofs. We do not see this as an indicator that the Glencoe market has flipped a switch and become a seller's market. In fact, we just sold a fantastic home for our clients in a weekend, we received 5 excellent offers and it will close well above listing price and above my client's expectations. Also, median sales price continues to climb!
Let's dive into the numbers for the past rolling 12 months.
📊 North Shore Market Snapshot 🏡✨
📍 Glencoe
🔥 🏡 Homes for Sale: ⬆️ 42.9%
🤝 Homes Under Contract: ⬆️ 0.9%
💰 Median Sales Price: ⬆️ 7.7%
📍 Wilmette
🏡 Homes for Sale: ⬇️ 14.7%
🤝 Homes Under Contract: ⬆️ 4.7%
💰 Median Sales Price: ⬆️ 9.2%
📍 Highland Park
🏡 Homes for Sale: ⬇️ 15.5%
🤝 Homes Under Contract: ⬇️ 2.7%
💰 Median Sales Price: ⬆️ 1.5%
RICK'S PICKS
Let’s take a look at a few of the homes that have sold recently where pricing strategy helped them achieve amazing results.
First, we have 411 Lake. This 5115 sq/ft home was built in 1922 and beautifully redone. Original asking price was $2,495,000, and it sold at $2,730,000 after only 4 days on the market.
Second, we have 1643 Sylvester in Highland Park. This 1999 built home sits on a great half acre lot. The list price was $2,875,000, and it sold for $3,100,000 after 5 days on the market.
Last, we have our own listing at 413 Jackson in Glencoe! This fantastic home was built in 2007 and backs to Watts Park. The list price was $1,949,000 and it will close for well over that price.
