$20,000 Lesson in New Beginnings

When I first spoke with my realtor about selling my condo, she understandably wanted to know how much I’d like to price my unit. She brought a list of a couple of condos in my subdivision complete with the amounts they recently sold for. I picked $82,000 based on what I thought looked reasonable compared to those others sale prices.

As I was returning my washer and dryer to my old unit (see previous entry), and as I was sacrificing my Saturday and my 3rd and 4th vertebrae haul that washer up that flight of stairs, I couldn’t help but think about the situation and whether I was playing the chump. You see, my manager looked at my listing online, and he noted that there were very few other condos for sale in my area, and they were priced twenty to thirty thousand dollars higher than mine. Last night, I repeated his search for myself, and I saw that he was correct. Now, none of the listings I first observed were under contract, so I figured they might have been priced to high. Then I saw a listing for a unit the same size as mine in the same area under contract, and it’s listing price was $110k. I saw another listing also under contract in the same area with a price of $102k, and it was about 500 square feet smaller than mine. Neither of those units were as nice as mine. If you don’t believe me, see for yourself.

Mine

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/118-Sterling-Ct_Alpharetta_GA_30004_M67044-15939?row=5

Theirs

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1632-Homestead-Trl_Alpharetta_GA_30004_M57412-11866?row=16

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3210-Pembroke-Cir_Alpharetta_GA_30004_M67077-00050?row=15

What on earth happened? My realtor works on commission, so logically she should want to sale my place for the most she can get to maximize her payoff, shouldn’t she? Granted, each of those other sellers were probably negotiated down from their asking price, but I seriously doubt they were talked down twenty or thirty grand.

I’m under contract, so I don’t know what else can be done. I don’t think I can break contract for just any reason, I apparently, I can be liable to my buyers. For instance, they could conceivable sue me to cover alternative living arrangements while they look for another place.

I suppose I’m partially to blame. I should have looked up the prices of other condos in my area rather than blindly trust my realtor’s research. Well, I wasn’t trusting her blindly; I had only had good experiences with her and her agency prior to this predicament. Still, that’s not an excuse; however, she should have done her research, too, so it’s not all my fault.

I think I’m going to send her an email on the topic. I’m not going to be angry or confrontational. Maybe I’ll say something like

“Hi, Victoria. I have to know if I made a mistake in pricing my unit. I looked up the prices of other condos for sale in my area, and mine looks seriously undervalued. I realize I’m under contract, so I doubt anything can be done, but if I let myself be low-balled, I’d like to know if only to learn a lesson.”

If nothing else, when I leave this place years from now, she (or whoever I’m working with) might be extra vigilant in representing my best interest. I suppose what irritates me most is my buyer was likely getting my place for $25,000 under market value, and he still wanted to bleed an extra thousand dollars out of me for a washer and dryer. Some people will just bleed you dry if they get the chance. I basically gave him a car. I’m a chump, or at least I was a chump. I’ve learned a lesson I won’t soon forget.