Contrary to popular belief, it is actually a great time to purchase a new home. Despite all the events that came along with the year 2020, the real estate market is doing quite well. While the prospect of scooping up a new house is exciting and tantalizing, it is important to be wary of sellers who want to get the most bang for their buck. When looking for a new home, there are some red flags that indicate a property might be overpriced.

The best thing to do when looking at the price of a new home is to determine if it’s a reasonable cost, and the easiest way to determine that is by comparing the price of the property against the other homes in the neighborhood. Many sites like Trulia and Zillow can easily show you the neighboring property values and their selling histories. If a house is being offered for $200k but it is located in a neighborhood where all the houses normally sell for half that amount, there is a good chance that the listing is wrong or simply overpriced.

While some might argue that the condition of the home also comes into play with a pricier home, there is truly only so much value that can be added to a property based on renovations. Even if the potential property has the best interior anyone has ever seen, the value of the home is still determined by the neighborhood, traffic, location, and a variety of other outside factors. For this reason, despite what any realtor or owner claims, it’s important to be careful and do your own research prior to placing an offer on a property.

The safest way to avoid overpriced properties is to avoid listings that have been on the market for a long amount of time. That being said, there is also a tactic in the real estate world called relisting that makes homes appear new by taking them off the market and then putting them back on. This is another reason why it’s wise to stick with realtors and sellers that are trustworthy. If someone is acting in the buyer’s best interest despite the possibility of losing a sale, this may be a sign that the person is honest. An example could include a seller who is open about any and all changes that were made to the property- even if the changes were not favorable or successful changes.

An informed consumer is a smart consumer. Don’t enter into a situation that stretches beyond personal comfort zones. Do the research and double-check that any properties of interest are not overpriced.

This article was originally published at https://peterpalivos.com/