+Best Cities For Sellers – Sellers are always wondering which cities are the best for their situation. Let’s face it, the housing and real estate market is bleak to put it mildly. Not sure when the recovery will start, but it is not here yet.
A new study put out by Zillow.com shows which cites have the best median sale to list price ratio. Basically, which homes sold closest to what the sellers expected to sale them for.
+Best Cities For Sellers
Maybe median sale price to list price ratio isn’t the greatest of indicators, but it is a good start to determine where sellers are getting just about what they expected to sale the house for in this market.
There are many markets where the sellers are so dilusional. Their homes sit on the market for months even years before they realize they must lower the asking price of the home to get it to sale. This is just the reality we live in these days. It is not pretty and again, I am not sure when we are going to get out of this funk.
Today’s conversation is a bright one because we get to discover where in the country are the buyers and sellers on the same page….at least the closes. This may be an opportunity for those real estate investing to move into these markets and have a better understanding of what is desired verses property value. Makes it easier to purchase distressed property, rehab it, then put it up for sale.
Nevertheless, let’s take a look at the markets deemed best for sellers:
Bend, Ore.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.983
Current home value: $170,900
Value year over year: -1.3%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:28.7%
9th-best ratio: Bakersfield, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.984
Current home value: $118,100
Value year over year: -12%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:23.6%
8th-best ratio: Washington, D.C.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.986
Current home value: $313,400
Value year over year: -4.5%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:30.7%
7th-best ratio: Riverside, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.987
Current home value: $186,800
Value year over year: -3.3%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:27.9%
4th-best ratio (tie): San Jose, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.988
Current home value: $555,300
Value year over year: -4.0%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:27.6%
4th-best ratio (tie): Las Vegas
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.988
Current home value: $119,200
Value year over year: -7.8%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:26.9%
3rd-best ratio: El Centro, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.944
Current home value: $111,800
Value year over year: -1.7%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:22.3%
Best ratio (tie): Stockton, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.995
Current home value: $148,100
Value year over year: -8.0%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:24.9%
Best ratio (tie): Modesto, Calif.
Median sale to list price ratio: 0.995
Current home value: $130,600
Value year over year: -10.1%
Percentage of listings with a price cut:31.8%
Source: RealEstate.MSN.com
As you can see from the list, there are a lot from California and states that were hit hardest by the fall in the market. To me, this indicates the sellers understand the value cut they took in this economy and are not ready to be more realistic with their asking prices. This isn’t something that comes easy to sellers in markets like these, but these people have obviously been devalued enough that they get it.
Are you in any of these markets? Would buy or invest in any of them today? It seems like they might be a good opportunity to move in as the bottom of the market seems like it is forming. Maybe this sets the stage for growth in the near future. What are your thoughts? - +Best Cities For Sellers
I know Bend was in a terrible shape about a year ago. I doubt it’s much better this year so it’s surprising to see it here.