Bargian hunting season

It is bargain hunting season. In this market, sellers really need to prepare themselves for what will come when they put their home on the market. The general feeling from buyers right now is "Why should I pay full list price? I want a deal!". Even when properties are fairly priced to begin with, many buyers just want to see how low a seller will go. It doesn't help that foreclosures (where banks price the properties low to get out of them as quickly as possible) are dragging down prices of seller-owned properties. The fact that many of these short-sale or foreclosure properties are in terrible condition often doesn't factor into a buyer's mentality about what better-looking homes are worth. The bottom line in this market is that an offer is reasonable if it is within 10% of the asking price. Just be prepared to negotiate. It's all a give and take. This may also mean pricing the home reasonably to begin with, but not rock bottom, or offering a closing cost credit to the buyer to generate interest. Sellers should also be prepared for up to 1% of the sales price to be spent on repairs after an inspection is done on a property (less for a condo).