Alison & Raul Elizalde

Sarasota Realtors

Alison and Raul Elizalde understand the Sarasota real estate market like nobody else. Their unique understanding comes from experience, specialized research, and deep community involvement. Their commitment to client service earned them the prestigious 5-Star Award given to the best real estate agents in Sarasota. Click here to learn more about Alison and Raul.

 

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It is becoming more and more clear to sellers of homes in Sarasota that the only way to bring traffic to their properties is to price them realistically. Since many sellers are still priced too high for the current market, properties that are priced correctly stand out and get more showings than their overpriced counterparts.

 

On the other hand, buyers, who are becoming aware of having the upper hand, tend to make offers at significant discounts from whatever the listing price may be, sometimes regardless of whether or not the property in play was priced correctly.

 

What is a seller to do, then? Price the home low to bring traffic but open the door to unreasonably low offers, or price the home high to leave a hopeful cushion but sacrifice the traffic? This is a tough dilemma.

 

In the last 12 months, sellers have reduced their listing prices only marginally. For sales of luxury and waterfront homes in Sarasota priced $3mm and above, the listing price was reduced by an average of just 4%, only a tiny improvement over the 2% average price reduction about a year ago. But when these homes went to the closing table, sellers accepted discounts as large as 17% from their original listing price.

 

 

It seems that buyers and sellers of homes in Sarasota are coming to an understanding: whatever the listing price, sellers have to be very accommodating in order to sell. Following the numbers in the previous paragraph, I conclude that this particular universe of Sarasota luxury homes is likely to sell at a 13% discount from current asking prices, that is, after the latest round of reductions. Given all indications, it seems likely that this is not likely to change in the next few months.

 

 

On the lower-priced end of the spectrum (Sarasota homes priced below $1mm) the situation is subtly different: listing prices were reduced more aggressively, to the tune of about 6% from their original listing price on average. However, final sales prices have not suffered as much, registering “only” a 13% discount from the original listing price. Therefore, this particular universe seems to be currently priced, after reductions, at 7% above what buyers are willing to pay.

 

 

The middle range – between $1mm and $3mm – shows an interesting situation. Although sellers have cut their listing prices by a good 6% on average, the final discount from the original listing price when these homes sold was the largest, at around 19%. This segment seems just as overpriced as the segment of high-end homes in Sarasota, at about 13%.

 

Property Price	Listing price reduction from original price	Closing price discount from original listing price	Current listing price excess over market price
Below $1mm	About 6%	About 13%	About 7%
$1mm-$3mm	About 6%	About 19%	About 13%
Above $3mm	About 4%	About 17%	About 13%

 

These are average numbers. For example, not all properties in the $1mm-$3mm segment are overpriced by 13%; some are well priced and might sell very close to their asking price; others, however, are severely overpriced and it might take a discount of 20% or more for them to sell.

 

One answer to the seller’s dilemma posted above is this: reduce the price as much as possible to bring the traffic, and prepare yourself for low-ball offers. But in the end, if your home is properly priced and shows well, you will have firmer grounds to stand on to respond to those offers. The “cushion” alternative seems fruitless in a market where buyers only want to see homes that are properly priced to begin with.

 

When it comes to knowing the Sarasota real estate market, Alison and Raul Elizalde have the expertise and knowledge to help you see where you stand when negotiating your real estate transaction, whether you are buying or selling a property. Our track record, added to the unsurpassed reputation of Michael Saunders & Company as the premier real estate company in Florida's Gulf Coast, give you the peace of mind you deserve. Alison and Raul have been named Best in Customer Satisfaction by an independent research company.

 

Call us today at 941-350-7904 for a consultation, and visit our website, www.sarasotapropertyconnection.com, for monthly updates on the Sarasota real estate market.