Is It Time To Sell Philadelphia Real Estate

Winter 2011 Report

Is It Time To Sell Philadelphia Real Estate?

A Message from Lawrence F. Flick, IV, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Prudential Fox & Roach, REALTORS® and The Trident Group

We all know it’s a buyer’s market: a great selection of houses, lower yet stable prices, more realistic sellers, and generationally low interest rates. But what about the sellers – can they achieve their goals, or is success just not possible in today’s market?

It’s been a long four years since the end of the real estate boom. For many of us, life changed dramatically in that time. Whether because of marriage, divorce, having children, seeing children leave the nest, or taking in a parent, we are reevaluating our current living situation. For first time buyers who feel secure about their employment and financial situation, today’s decision point is clear. It’s easy to see the benefits of the
current market. But for some who must sell a home in order to buy another, the advantages of making a move may not be so obvious. Many sellers continue to hold off, waiting until the market “improves,” making do and postponing plans even though their current situation is uncomfortable.
It doesn’t have to be this way. In an ideal world, everyone would sell in a seller’s market and buy in a buyer’s market. But in reality, those two conditions don’t co-exist. So how can a seller find opportunity in a  buyer’s market? Consider this: selling and then buying a home in a buyer’s market generally nets positive results. How is that possible? The answer is that even if we lose some value when selling our house now, we save when we buy a new home at a price lower than if we had bought at the peak of the market. This is especially true when we trade up to a more expensive property. And when we consider today’s exceptionally low mortgage interest rates, the potential savings soar because we save significant dollars every month throughout the life of the loan.

ARE YOU REALLY READY TO SELL?

If you are ready to sell your home now, success all comes down to how well your property competes
with others on the market. Before listing yours, analyze the market with your Prudential Fox & Roach
sales associate:

• Look at the data from comparable sales in the past six months. What was their initial list price versus the final selling price? What price reductions did they make? How long were they on the market?
• Review properties that were for sale but withdrawn from the market. Try to determine why they didn’t sell.
• Be familiar with competing properties currently on the market. How long have they been for sale? Have they had price reductions? Then, take the time to tour them with your Prudential Fox & Roach salesassociate. Consider these homes from a buyer’s point of view to see how yours compares. Is yours the best value? If you really want to sell, it needs to be!…(continued)

Click here to download the Full PDF version of the 2011 Winter Chairman’s Report.

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Blog post compliments of CenterCityTeam’s Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

Frank L. DeFazio, Esquire
Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors – Society Hill
530 Walnut Street, Suite 260
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215.521.1623  Direct
610.636.4364  Cellular
888.308.1148  Fax
[email protected]
www.CenterCityTeam.com