Tighter Market Brings Innovative Pricing

Thanks to changing Real Estate markets, pricing a house is getting trickier than it was a year ago. As a result, some home sellers are trying new strategies.

In a slowing market, Real Estate professionals typically recommend setting a price that's around 5 percent below what similar properties are selling at. But some are trying less-conventional techniques.

Another idea: Cutting the price quickly and continuously until the house sells. Rob Clark, a real-estate professional in Sarasota, thinks this works, especially for Sellers who have a lot of equity in a house and can afford to be flexible.

Another theory is that switching pricing blocks may help because it brings a house to the attention of home buyers searching online who only are looking between certain parameters. Buyers tend to look in $20,000 to $25,000 increments for homes under $500,000, in $50,000 increments for homes between $500,000 and $1 million, and in $250,000 increments over $1 million.

Set a price at the top of a break point, and then jump down a whole notch if the market doesn't respond, say, from $749,000 to $699,000. "The goal is to hit the top of the market, without going over the edge."