How to Tell Where the Fish Buyers are Biting (or at least, looking)

As a listing agent counseling a Seller about where to initially price — or, if necessary — reduce to, a key step is to know where the competition is priced.

The goal:  position the client’s home to stand out.

But, what if there was a way to see, by price point, where Buyers are most active?

Actually . . . there is.

Clusters & Air Pockets

Called a “Target Market Analysis,” the resulting bar graph (example above) indicates which price points are getting showings — and equally important, which price points aren’t.

Think of it as “sonar for Buyers.”

So, the report above summarizes showings for these fields:  price between $225,000 – $300,000; increments of $5,000; Single Family homes with 3+ Bedrooms; zip code 55426 (western St. Louis Park); going back the last 30 days.

What does the data reveal?

While there was a huge cluster of showings between $255,000 – $259,999 (more than 60, in fact), there were practically no showings from $265,000 – $284,999.

The takeaway:  anything listed in the high $200’s that’s been sitting should consider reducing to $259,900 or lower to attract Buyers active at that price point.

About the author

Ross Kaplan has 19+ years experience selling real estate all over the Twin Cities. He is also a 12-time consecutive "Super Real Estate Agent," as determined by Mpls. - St. Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Magazine. Prior to becoming a Realtor, Ross was an attorney (corporate law), CPA, and entrepreneur. He holds an economics degree from Stanford.

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