Working with a broker who knows your neighborhood is the best way to set the right asking price for your home. Such a broker will “run the comps” (short for “comparables”), which means compiling a list of nearby homes similar to yours and their final selling price. Sellers who list their homes for a price that conforms to these “comps” boost their odds of selling. Those who find they are receiving no offers as fall gets under way should take another look at their asking price.
“In this marketplace, if your home is on the market for more than 90 days, the public is actually giving you feedback that you are overpriced,” says Lyn Sims, a broker at RE/MAX Suburban in Schaumburg, Ill.
For homes that are priced right, the Chicago-area market is a strong one and has been for some time. In June, for instance, the Illinois Association of REALTORS® reported that 11,103 condos and single-family homes sold in the nine-county Chicago area, an increase of 18.7 percent from the same month one year earlier.
In July, the numbers were strong, too. Home sales hit 11,897 that month, up 36.1 percent from the same month in 2012.
Those whose home didn’t sell this summer might even find some advantage in having it on the market this fall and winter.
