This week in DC real estate ...

• February started out strong and continues to be so. There are many buyers out there looking to purchase property but they are suffering from "price fatigue." They're tired of looking at over-priced listings and would rather NOT put an offer on something they perceive as too high. Sellers should be careful about presuming that a buyer will write an offer, even a low one, on their over-priced home. The right price is key in attracting buyers ... and offers.
• Likewise, buyers should not wait. The market continues to favor them, for the moment. And interest rates are inching up.
• Real-life story of the week. Seller had a buyer's offer on the table. Seller stalled, hoping another offer would come in. It didn't. Buyer walked away from the deal at 2:00 pm. At 2:10 pm, the sellers tells their agent, "we'll take it." Too late. Buyer says, "no dice." Next day, buyer comes back and says, "OK, but our new offer is 10% less." Seller took it ... and was grateful.
• There continue to be multiple offers (one, two, three buyers --- not fifteen!) on appropriately priced listings.
• It appears that many sellers have an over-inflated impression of their home's value. When pricing, it's vitally important not only to look at recent sales, but also at what ELSE is currently on the market. Sellers and their agents need to put on their "buyer hats" and try to figure out what kind of competition they're going to have when they go on the market. If there are other, attractive listings on the market, it might behoove sellers to wait until the competition is sparser.