Sellers are either “In” the Hilton Head Market or “Out”

It seemed to me that there were a lot of properties for sale the other day.  That was until an agent spoke up in one of our Dunes Marketing Group sales meetings.  Of the properties in a community he showed a client, only 20% of the sellers were actually “in” the market.  The other properties were over priced and the buyer did not even want to look at them.  I did some market research on this area and others and  discovered that 80% of the properties were on average 40% higher in price than the others.  Once he and his buyer realised this concept, a buying decision was made based on these “lower” inventories. 

Be the leader, not the loser

If 20% of the properties are priced to sell on Hilton Head, what happens to the other 80%?  I call this the follow the loser sydrome.  The sellers that want to maximize their selling prices are the ones that set a value that attracts buyers that submit offers.  Once a property sells in a community, all the other sellers reset their prices based on this “comp”.  The bad news for these followers is that this process repeats itself all over again until inventory levels reach a normal supply of approximately 6 months or less. 

Market will seek its own level

Just think, right now we are selling 20% of what we should be selling on Hilton Head Island.  It is not the economy, not the market and not a lack of buyers that are holding our market back from correction.  The problem is many sellers are still trying to grab values that are simply too high.  Their reason may be that they think they are protecting the neighborhood values or some other misconception, but in fact they are not allowing the market to correct.  We all must remember that a real estate market is fluid and it will seek its own level despite anything we do.

Sell your property with a Hilton Head Strategist

When it comes to making a move on Hilton Head, South Carolina, it just makes sense for you to turn to a Hilton Head Real Estate Professional for everything you need to know about Hilton Head Homes and Communities. We invite you to contact us at islandrealtor@hargray.com or call us on our direct line at 800-932-3652 about selling or living in this beautiful area!

Happy Hilton Head….Robbie Bunting, A Hilton Head Real Realtor for 25 years now