@functionthenlook price is difficult to assess. There are houses around the corner selling for about $50-$150k more than mine with the same sq footage and general layout. Others across the street are $30k lower. None are really consistently selling, but the few that have were priced at $385k, $590k and $445k.

Sounds like you have more inventory than buyers presently. I thought Atlanta was booming. New people moving in Maybe it meet its max.

The info posted here might help shed some light on what is going on. https://rehrealestate.com/how-to-sell-your-home-after-labor-day/

Regarding the two similar homes that sold since Labor Day... take a good look at the MLS data sheet for each one and figure out why the buyers chose that home over yours.

Do this exercise with your competition too. Go through each property and ask yourself, if you were a buyer, would you choose the competition over your home.

Also, ask your agent to tell you what the absorption rate for your area and price range is. This stat will give you an accurate take on how many days of inventory are currently on the market at the current sales rate.

Thanks! Will certainly ask. All of the houses in my neighborhood are now set well below what houses were selling for a couple months back and still no activity for anyone. I’ve now had one showing in 60 day, similar to the other houses. Comps are selling at $430 - $500k. Our houses are now all priced at $397-$399k. Two of us may pull our houses for the market soon because its not really worth it at this point.

Sounds like your market has softened since Labor Day. Your Realtor can easily track sales back over time to see if this is a seasonal type response that happens every year or if this is a new trend. Naturally, if it truly isn't worth selling at the new price point, then take your home off the market.

what city are you located in?

NW Atlanta. I confirmed with another RE agent I know that something is going on. The market cooled pretty dramatically. She said there’s a lot less buyers in the market, and buyers aren’t responding to price or home condition the way they use too. You’ll see a house for $430k sit for months, and the house next to it in similar condition sell for $500k in five days. This is my first time selling. Buying was easy, but this experience may put me off home ownership altogether!

Were those that sold quickly recent or were they prior to Labor Day? You are trying to sell in the slowest time of year. Unless absolutely necessary no one likes to move during the holiday season. The market will likely pick up again in the spring. You can't compare sales from over the summer to now.

Both. Obviously more sold pre-Labor Day, but there have been quite a few that have sold pretty quickly (mostly in the suburbs right outside Atlanta and new construction). the inventory has grown substantially in the last few weeks. I think we now have 6 months of inventory. I’m lucky in that I can wait until market conditions change. I was hoping to buy in a new construction Neighborhood. There was a house I really wanted, that’s a quick move in. Its still available, but given my house is not likely to sell, I’m going to move forward with a new build instead (exact same floor plan) which will be ready in May. The trick is figuring out the right time to relist...

If you are trying to sell, why take it off the market? Sales happen all throughout the Winter in Atlanta. You can't sell, if you don't offer it for sale.

I'm with ncreaestateguy and if there is a 6 month inventory then it could take 6 months to sell.

When we sold our house in 2013, it took 6 months. I know sales slow down after Labor Day, but it doesn't mean houses aren't sold. We put our house on the market "late" in the season. It was July. It sold on New Year's weekend.

For a few reasons - the houses that are selling now are selling for a lot less than they were even three months ago. I guess my thinking was that I may get a better price if I wait until February/March (when a lot houses in my neighborhood sold for pretty good prices). Since I couldn't sell my house, the house I wanted is no longer an option - meaning I have to wait 7-8 months for the new one to be built. So I have time. I also have a terrible agent - he has no sense of he local market (I have to tell him what average DOM is, and what's sold and pending), isn't responsive or communicative, doesn't know how to market homes, etc. The contract doesn't end until December 23, but I'd rather just be done. The third reason - and this is my fault - is I just wasn't prepared for this. I put a good bulk of my stuff (including cooking stuff and workout equipment) in storage to declutter. I can't go indefinitely without those things, and I'm really looking to live a full life again. I've had three showings in 80 days, so it doesn't seem like this thing is going to move anytime soon. The good (or bad) news, depending on how you look at it, is that the other houses in my neighborhood are experiencing the exact same thing...so there's comfort in that, I guess.

Just be careful in thinking that prices will be better in February/March. They could be, but with a lot of inventory they may not be. Also depends on what the economy does.

Home prices are not that cyclical on a monthly basis. When inventory falls off in the winter, so do the buyers and conversely, when inventory increases in the Spring, so do the buyers... so it washes out. Home pricing cycles have to be looked at on at least a 6 month term, and if there is a change, it is caused by economics, not the seasons.

All of my sellers are put up on an auto home search that will email them homes that match their home's criteria, the day they come on the market. This is your competition. I treat the sales process as a competitive game. It also will send them homes that have price changes, homes that go under contract and homes that close or expire. I call it The Competition Tracking Site. My sellers love it! Every time a home goes under contract, the seller and I ask ourselves WHY did the buyer choose this home over mine? Every time a new home comes on the market, we ask ourselves, if we were a buyer, would we choose this new listing over my home. After a short time of analyzing this data, coupled with knowing the area's Absorption Rate, there is no excuse to not being able to sell a home.

Three showings in 80 days, in a pretty good sellers market, is shouting to you that you are over priced. The process of selling a property is not rocket science, the agent just needs to be pro active in analyzing what the market is telling them.

For example, I currently have a listing that started out at $210,000. I priced it knowingly a bit high because the sellers were pushing me to go even higher, so I agreed to this price with the understanding that we would use the Competition Tracking Site along with the feedback to adjust if needed. We listed it as Coming Soon for 10 days before going live. This allows a pent up demand to be created and a flood of buyers to view it that first week. We received 20 showings in 10 days, but no offers... feedback was all the same. House needed to be updated, and the buyers would not be able to afford the updates after spending their cash on the down payment. After 10 days, I called the sellers and advised them to lower the price to $199,999. They did not agree right away, stating that it had only been 10 days. I explained to them that when you have 20 showings in 10 days and no offers, then we need to respond to what they were saying. We reduced to $199,999 and the next 4 showings all expressed interest! (it was only a $10,000 difference, but we went from the 200's down into the $100s. A big psychological difference in a buyer's sub conscience) And then yesterday we received multiple offers and signed a full price, no seller paid closing cost contract.

Another thing I did after reading the feedback was to find a lender that offered a no down payment and no PMI option. I figured that since the feedback was telling us that the needed updates were going to be a burden on the buyers after they spent most of their savings, that this may be a way to overcome that objection. The buyers could use their savings on updating the home, rather than using it for the DP. I added this financing option into the public remarks of the MLS, and made a large placard explaining all this and put it in the home. The buyer that won the contract is using this program.

When you relist in the Spring, find an agent that really understands the market, knows how to analyze it and is ACTIVE in their marketing, as opposed to being passive.

I hope these ideas give sellers some ammunition if they are having trouble selling.

"find a lender that offered a no down payment and no PMI option. "

Sounds like 2008 all over again. People buying what they can't afford. Instead of putting equity into a house (that's what the down payment is), people are watching HGTV (or spending too much time on gardenweb) and insisting on redoing functioning kitchens and knocking down walls for the open concept look. There is a difference between a "needed update" and fixing broken parts. Exchanging Corian countertops for granite is NOT a needed update despite what the gurus say. It's deja vu all over again.

This home was stuck in the 90s... it functioned but "needs" updated.

The loan program has been around for years and years... It's the USDA rural home loan program. Need at least a 620 credit score.

I can not ethically "hide" this program from my buyers or sellers. I am a fiduciary for their best interests. I explain the pros and cons of each program, and let them make the decision.

They pay for it one way or another. Whether upfront or in the rate. USDA RD loans are great when you can get them but they are very limited to area and homes.

Not nearly as limited as they once were. This home is not what people would consider rural at all... yes, nothing is for free, but at 4.25%, the rate is not too bad.

Geographically, almost 95% of the US qualifies for the USDA RD loans.

Rates are easily in the low 3% range. 4.25% Historically isn’t bad but it’s not good currently. Not saying it’s a bad thing as long as the buyers know they are paying. It in the rate for the life of the loan. It’s

Thanks all, for the feedback!

@ncrealestateguy - we're not in a seller's market; at least not in my neighborhood. In speaking to other realtors, it's cool at best. In regards to pricing - certainly don't disagree. It's hard to determine what the appropriate pricing is however. The other houses in a one mile radius (similar sq. footage, layout, size, etc) sold/recently pending went for $460K, $500K, $445K, $440K, another $500K and $395K. My house is priced at $397K. Also, the other houses in my neighborhood are experiencing similar slowness; there are currently two others for sale, and they've had the same showings in the same or longer time period. I asked around to a few realtors in the area and they advised me not to lower the price anymore - and that price and condition weren't haven't nearly the affect on current sales as usual. Most things that are going pending right now are either sub-$200K or $440K and higher. Also - I wish I had an agent that gave me even half of those insights (what to expect in regards to price, number of showings, etc). My realtor actually wanted to list $30K higher than we started because he had no sense of the market. He thought lowering it to our original price of $424K was giving money away but would make it move quicker.

@lyfia - understood. I guess it's always a risk and you really never know either way.

I'll let everyone know how this turns out. Huge lessons learned for me. Unfortunately this is my first home sale, and I don't have anyone close to get advice from. My dad owns the first house he bought, my mom sold the first house she bought through one of those "Zillow Offers" type programs, and my friends either kept their first homes as investment opportunities or sold them within a week or two. So this is uncharted territory. Knowing now what I wish I had known then...I'm hesitant to move forward with buying a new house as I never want to go through this again. You essentially have to put your entire life on hold.

Tiggerigh, rates are in the high threes at best to the low fours. I just had a client with a credit score of 820 shop around to 4 lenders... his best quoted rate was 3.625%. No low threes out there.

Nikki, Sorry for your frustrations... It is a PIA to be a seller and not knowing what to do to get it sold. Figuring out the absorption rate would be the first step I would do. Knowing how many comparable homes are selling each month and then seeing how many months worth of inventory there currently are. This will give you a good idea as to how long to expect a sale to last.

Houses sell even in a "cool" market... heck, you just listed 5 or 6 of them! It probably just seems cool , because you are not one of those sellers. And beware of asking agents how the market is doing. A lot of agents will interpret that question as' "How is YOUR business doing?". A hot agent will tell you the market is moving well, while the slow agent will tell you it is slow. Even more reason why you need facts and numbers and analysis to answer this question. Not just some intangible answer as "It is cool at best". Even if it is a slowing market, a good analysis will show the agent what it will take to sell.

Have you considered getting an offer from one of the I- Buyers? Like Zillow, OpenDoor? It will more than likely be a bit below market value, but it may not hurt to at least have them make you an offer.

Another option is an investment group called Ribbon. They will purchase your new property with all cash, so no financing contingency and no inspection contingency. You move into your new home and pay a minimal rent that covers their operating costs. Prorated to the day. You then sell your old home and then "purchase" your new home from Ribbon. This is a great option in a hot sellers market where no seller is willing to accept a contingent offer. Also great option if you find that perfect, unique home, but have not sold yours yet... have Ribbon purchase it, instead of losing it. Also great for relocations... let's the client focus on the move and not the transaction.

If I were you, I would ask your current agent to release you from the contract fully, and relist with an agent that can analyze your market, and relist ASAP. It has to be on the market to sell. And remember, an overpriced home taking a long time to sell in the Winter, will also take a long time to sell in the Spring and Summer.

That's fair advice - homes are selling. I do think it's worth mentioning that this is 5 out of 60 homes, most of which have been sitting for some time. I think the last figures I got were that 50% of homes had reduced their prices (many more than once). I'm not an expert - and you clearly have more experience than I do - but that doesn't really strike me as a sellers market.

The GOOD news, if there is any, is that the new construction I'm trying to buy in has also experienced a pretty decent slow down as well and they're struggling to move inventory.. I'll check out Ribbon.

Out of curiosity, why do you feel Atlanta is a hot sellers market? Zillow, Redfin, HomeSnap, several news outlets and a few agents that I've spoken to have all mentioned the market cooling quite dramatically in the last two months. It was a great market three months ago, a so-so market two months ago, and now agents are referring to it as a buyers market.

Finally - agree on pricing, but again I'm below what comparable houses are going pending for by a pretty good margin (about $60 - $100K). In fact, I'm pretty far below what homes in my neighborhood sold for up until the last house (which is a corporate relo that they sold at a rock bottom price because they had to move). I'm willing to be fair with my price, but there's also a point where it's simply not worth it. Perhaps I should just ride out the market for a few years.

/\/\/\ This. Your agent should release you from your contract with a written request. The only remains will be that if anyone who looked at the house during the contract period makes an offer, your old agent will be owed a commission. Since that was only three people, shouldn't be a big deal.

Next, interview three different agents and ask the smart questions that ncrealestateguy suggested. Each one should give you two listing prices for the home: one "as is", and a high price if you do this and that (minor adjustments usually). For example, my last team leaders (who handled sellers; I worked with buyers) were able to successfully sell a home after buying and installing a single 6-foot panel of vinyl fencing that blocked the view of the neighbors' trash can from potential buyers as they walked up the driveway. It can be really simple stuff, but important details that a great agent will advise you.

Good luck!

Thanks @c9pilot!

Any guidance on how to get out of the contract? I've requested this a couple of times (about three weeks back) and my agent either ignored it (didn't respond) or said he'd prefer to wait until it ended on 12/23 so I didn't get charged a early termination fee. Should I just go straight to the broker?

Go straight to the Broker and tell them you feel like the agent abandoned you. That is a legal term that agents do not like to hear. Tell them to pound sand regarding the early termination fee. Did you sign something that stated there would be a fee?

Thanks @ncrealestateguy. In an update, one of the other sellers in my neighborhood just pulled their house from the market...

More reason why I would stay in the market. (If you are logistically able)

Bury 2 St Joseph upside down in the yard, one in the front yard and one in the backyard.

Ha....yeah. Definitely did that 2.5 months ago. :(

@ncrealestateguy depends. The other house in the market just priced theirs below where I can reasonably go. We're also now an average of $50K below where other houses in our market are. I can't budge anymore on price and still have this be worth it, so we'll see what happens.

Has anyone ever heard of an option offer? I got an "option to buy offer"...I'm not entirely sure what it is and I can't get my real estate agent to respond with more detail. I guess they also attached a brochure explaining what this company did, but he didn't pass it along to me. Is it essentially a company that comes in and tries to rent it, with an option to buy if they want to?

Pass on it. Depending on your state laws you would be renting to the people with some or all of the rent going toward the cost of the house. Sometime in the future they might own it. It normally means the people are unable to obtain financing at a reasonable interest rate.

It's an investment company, if that changes things at all...

No

I think I'm going to pursue. I just found out my realtor misrepresented what the offer is. Long story short, it's an investment company who presents offer to purchase contracts to sellers who are having trouble selling, basically with the assumption that they can market it better, fetch a better price than the current listing price and therefore make a profit. They will have 60 days essentially to generate interest and attract a strong buyer, at which point they'll exercise their option to buy. The contract is for full price (of my current listing price), all cash offer, no contingencies (again, if they exercise the option). I don't see any downside. We're not generating any interest, my real estate agent is terrible (in fact it took him two days to send this, and even though we're nearing the expiration date he hasn't responded to texts or emails), and I have nothing to lose at this point...

What Denita said as I can't see much good coming from the "offer" you got and also what ncrealestateguy said. Get out of the contract with your current agent or at least have it transferred to someone else in the office that will work for you.

Why not just get a new Realtor, and market it for the higher price and YOU realize the profits? In less than 60 days!

Kind of sounds crazy, huh? How are they going to market it better than a good agent? They can't. 95% of sales go through an agent. Are they also a Real Estate company?

I believe most states do not approve of Assigning a contract, which sounds like what they want to do if they find a buyer.

Any buyer they find is going to research the property and see that it was being offered at a lower price only a few weeks earlier, and see that it never sold at that lower price, so why would they pursue it?

I could go on and on about why this sounds fishy. Can you scan the offer and upload here? I would be interested to see the terms.

What is the name of the investment group?

Agree with ncrealestateguy.

Also, cash offers are accompanied by proof of funds (POF) and you didn't mention that you have seen the bank statement showing at least the amount of the purchase in liquid funds. This is a critical component. How much of the deposit is non-refundable? A non-refundable deposit is standard in an option contract.

There are legitimate investment groups - and a whole bunch of 'wanna be' investors that aren't legitimate. Truly, I've seen some contract doozies. Some even use their own contracts and not the regular real estate STATE APPROVED contracts with the normal, state approved option clause.

Any option contract from an investment company will NOT be in your favor. Its a Lease, with an option to buy. There are SO many things that can go wrong. T This is not for the inexperienced Buyer/Seller/Investor. I wouldn't even consider it, if I were you. Get rid of your agent, and get a new one that knows what he's doing. Get the house sold and any profit goes to you, not to a middleman.

If you insist on proceeding anyway, be sure you use a REAL ESTATE ATTORNEY (not just any attorney) to review any documents and tell you what they actually say, and to what you are agreeing.

Thanks all. It doesn’t matter. My real estate agent never responded back. I’m contacting agents brokerage tomorrow to end the contract and delist the house. Im also going to cancel the contract on the house I’m building. I appreciate everyone’s guidance!

^Good idea Nikki.

I did not realize you were under contract to build a house. Most new construction contracts require a non refundable deposit.

I hope all works out for you.

Thank you @ncrealestateguy