And that is really true when it comes to selling your property

Hi. I’m Craig See and it’s a pleasure to be writing about land and property in Hampshire County and surrounding counties. I’m the owner of Pioneer Ridge Realty located in downtown Romney.

You might be wondering why the brokerage name is Pioneer Ridge, so we’ll get that out of the way right now. No, I don’t live somewhere that is named Pioneer Ridge. Actually, not a whole lot of research went into the name other than I just liked the sound of Pioneer Ridge. It just kind of fits the territory.

But I’m not the kind that just does everything on a whim. When it comes to real estate – buying or selling – I get very serious and I research everything.

The reason for The Price is Right headline above is that not all land or property sells at the same pace and I believe listing price is the primary reason. Today, I’d like to talk to you about land sales.

For example, there are 347 active land listings in Hampshire County as of this writing. Just over 200 have been listed for sale for up to one year. Over 140 have been listed for sale up to 11 years – clear back to 2008.

And the acreage ranges from 7 properties over 100 acres, 7 properties from 50 to 99 acres, 42 properties from 20-49 acres, 74 properties from 5-19 acres and 71 properties from 4.99 to one-quarter acres.

Were all these properties mis-priced at the time of their listing? Probably not, but you can bet some of them were. In my way of thinking, pricing of the property is the number on priority for selling. Too high, and the property gets known as out of sight and then becomes out of the mind of prospective buyers. Price the property too low and the seller leaves money on the table.

So, when you get ready to put your property on the market make sure you choose a broker who knows the market and knows value. My experience with over 17 years as an appraiser and real estate sales can help you become a wise and knowledgeable landowner ready to sell. Contact me and let’s get to know one another.

For a little perspective, my nomination for the Endurance Award goes to the good folks on Lazy River Rd. near Springfield, WV with 3,902 days on the market. Yep, that’s right, it’s been listed over 10 years.

Next time: The Price is Right – Selling a home – Part 2