Really Knowing Your Market
Our markets are changing and headlines can be misleading. Coach Denise explains the importance of really knowing and understanding your market.
Today's Zebra Report is on a very important topic - really knowing your stats and your numbers. Our market may appear to be sending mixed signals, but if you have been tracking and paying attention to your local market then you will not only have a better idea of what's actually happening, but you will be in a position to explain it to both prospects and clients.
Here's just one great example. As our market has changed over the last three to six months, I have seen a lot of headlines that look something like. These headlines are very misleading. You need to be able to dive into the stats because when a client comes to you and say, "I just heard that median sales prices in this are have taken a dive!"
Well, let's put that into perspective. Let's say you see a headline like that. You cannot take that at face value. You need to know the area, know the sales that have happened in that area, and you need to be to know: did the median sales prices in that area dive because home prices are going down across the board OR was there something else that happened in that market that made that change of median sale price happen. For example, maybe fewer larger homes have sold, then the inventory on the market has changed. It's not that house values have gone down, it just means that lower priced homes are going onto the market.
Median sale price can be very misleading. You have to get very specific with the inventory that has been sold. You may find that while median sale price declines that in fact, days on market is staying the same and list-to-sale price ratios are at 100% or even higher. That doesn't mean that the market is down in this area - people are still getting full price but the product on the market is at a different price point.
Don't be the agent that mistakenly assesses the market with just one number. Really get into that MLS of yours and learn to understand the whole picture, not just the headlines.
By Denise Lones CSP, M.I.R.M., CDEI - The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, brings nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.