I was talking to a Realtor friend of mine in Chicago the other day.  On Friday she had listed a great property that she was so excited about – it represented a great value and was priced correctly in the market. 

Monday morning, two comparable properties had been reduced in price and the pricing that had been determined on Friday that was correct, was now in fact incorrect.  It was hard to believe that she was right on Friday and wrong on Monday. 

We had to step back and realize that all markets, especially the real estate market, changes from day to day. 

I once had a client who owned a lot in Sea Pines Plantation.  He called to get an updated market analysis on his property and I told him that the lot was worth $600,000. 

Six months later I heard from my client; he was so excited because he had someone offer him $600,000 for his lot and he had signed a contract.  I then told him that his lot at this point was actually worth somewhere around $700,000.  My client was distraught because I had previously told him that his lot was worth $600,000. 

Again, the market changes from day to day.  This is why I think it is important to consult your Realtor regularly as to the value of your property.  Remember, you can be right on Friday and wrong on Monday.

I was recently talking to another Hilton Head Island Realtor who showed me a mailing that another Realtor had mailed out to Hilton Head Plantation.  In this particular mailout, this Realtor was proclaiming that they were the “Hilton Head Plantation Specialist”. 

After looking in MLS, we soon found out that this Realtor had not even sold one property in Hilton Head Plantation - it made us wonder how they came to the conclusion that they were a “Hilton Head Plantation Specialist”.  It is hard to call yourself an expert in a market when you have not even made one sale in that particular area. 

The truth is, in advertising, people  say almost anything they want – but that does not necessarily make it true. 

I believe that you become a “real estate specialist” in a certain area by producing.  I consider myself to be an Island Club Villa specialist because I have been involved in over 150 transactions in the Island Club - I know that area, Iknow the amenities, I know the amenities and I know the disadvantages.   

If you needed heart surgery, would you go to a regular doctor, or would you want to find a “heart specialist” who has performed s surgery often and has had good results? 

I think this works the same in real estate, if you want to get your property sold, do you list with just anyone, or do you find your “real estate specialist” who has listed and sold lots of property and can show you results.

I was recently talking to a realtor friend of mine that used the above quote.  The more I thought about it the more I realized he was correct.

I’ve noticed in my years that when I list a house the seller always tells me all the great things about the house (IE: the kids learned to walk here, we celebrated my husband’s 50th birthday out on the back porch….) and they’ve always have great stories to tell about the house. 

I’ve also noticed over the years when I list property the sellers always tells me about how great the community is, how the people next-door are the nicest people in the world, the people at the end of the street would do anything for you, etc.

I’ve also noticed that when people buy houses they look at a house as a commodity.  Once they purchase it and move in it does become a home.  But when they’re buying it, it’s a commodity so therefore it’s not a home, it’s a house. 

The more I thought about my friend’s point of view it made me realize he was exactly correct and any seller should realize that.  The buyer is not going to pay you $25,000 more for your house just because the next-door neighbor is the nicest guy in the world or because he believes politically like you do.  The buyer is always going to look at your house as a commodity and compare it to all the other homes that are presently on the market and will offer you what they think a fair price is based on what other similar homes are priced at. 

Does that make sense?