Where Sellers Are Most Unrealistic With List Prices

House prices have fallen in many areas of the country during the last five years, forcing sellers to get more realistic. But some sellers still are hoping to get more for their home, despite market conditions. SmartMoney, in using housing data from the National Association of REALTORS®, found which metro areas appear to be the least realistic with their asking prices. They based their analysis on the gap between the median list price and median sales price in March housing data. The least realistic cities for asking prices, according to SmartMoney, are: Atlanta: a 40 percent gap between the median list price ($150,000) and median sales price ($90,600). Jacksonville, Fla.: a 34 percent gap between the median list price ($184,775) and median sales price ($121,600) Washington, D.C.: a 13 percent gap between the median list price ($359,900) and the median sales price ($313,300) Meanwhile, sellers seem to be the most realistic with their list prices in Las Vegas, according to the SmartMoney analysis. In Las Vegas, the median sales price is $121,800, which is slightly above the median list price of $120,000. SmartMoney includes a disclaimer in its analysis, reminding readers that the study was based on median prices, where half the homes are below that price and half are above. Source: “Cities Where Sellers Are the Least Realistic,” MSN Real Estate (April 24, 2012)