Should I consider “contingent” offers when selling my home?

A contingent offer is one  which depends on the sale of another property in order for the deal to go through.  If the other property actually is under contract and just awaiting closing, that would be fine. But in the cases involving properties that are not yet under contract, the answer 95% of the time should be NO.  When you sell your home dependent  on another’s future sale, you are merely trading your problem for theirs. The big difference is that you don’t have any control over their efforts to precipitate a sale. If they are not aggressive enough on price or have an ineffective agent, you could be in big trouble. Remember, with so many listings on the market, nobody will likely pursue a home with a contingency attached. If your home is very unique or has a peculiarity that might make it difficult to sell, even in a better market, it might be worth the risk. Some examples would be high-end homes with non-traditional design, homes adjacent to railroads or highways, condos with unusually high assessments and homes that substantially exceed the price norm for their given neighborhood.

Will I sell my home for more by LOWERING the price?

Surprisingly, the answer is YES. With so many overpriced listings buyers only are interested in the most competitively priced homes. Why would they want to try to “lowball” you when they can just as easily work with someone who clearly has more realistic expectations. I have experienced this phenomenon on a number of occassions this year. I listed a townhome in excellent condition for $199,900. Similar homes had recently sold for $193,000 and $195,000. In a declining market, we were getting few showings and eventually a “stupid” offer of $160,000. Then a short-sale in the neighborhood in poor condition sold for $180,000. What to do? We dropped the price to $189,900 and the number of showings drastically picked up. In two weeks we had two offers and got $189,000. If we were still listed in the $190′s, I feel certain it would still be for sale.  Eventually, it would sell for less because of more short-sales, more difficult financing, and deteriorating weather.