How Do I Sell My Pace Home When Buyers Are Also Touring New Construction?

You price it against what the builders are offering right now, and you show buyers what your home has that a new build doesn't. In Pace, many of the buyers touring your home have also toured a model home that week. So your home isn't only compared with the resale homes on your street. It's compared with a brand-new house down the road, with its own incentives.

Vivian Corwin is a bilingual Realtor and Military Relocation Professional with IXL Real Estate Florida in Pensacola, FL, helping military and relocating families buy and sell homes across Pensacola, Pace, Milton, Gulf Breeze, and Navarre. New construction is one of my specialties, and I work directly with D.R. Horton, Adams Homes and Holiday Builders. That's why I know what the new homes near you are offering, and I price and present your home against them.

Pace is one of the busiest parts of the area for new construction, and builders release new phases and lots over time. Buyers here have real choices, and they know it.

Your home's value depends on recent resale prices near you and on what the builders are offering right now. If a builder is offering help with closing costs or upgrades, a buyer will weigh that against your price. A number that ignores the builders across town can look fine on paper and still sit.

I don't hand you one number. I lay out three pricing strategies side by side, Plan A, Plan B and Plan C, built on recent nearby sales and on the new construction your buyers are also touring. You choose.

More than most sellers give it credit for. The job is to make it obvious to a buyer who just walked through a model home.

• A finished yard. Grass, trees, a fence, a patio. A new build often starts with dirt and a to-do list.
• Upgrades already in place. The things a buyer would pay extra for in a builder's design center may already be in your home.
• A faster move-in. No build schedule and no waiting on a lot. For a buyer with a move date, that can matter more than anything.
• An established street. The neighborhood around your home is already built, so buyers can see exactly what they're getting.

If your home is in the Pace High School zone, that's a big part of what buyers here are looking for. We confirm the zone for your address and make it clear in the listing.

A model home is staged by professionals, and buyers remember it. Your listing has to meet that bar the first time buyers see it, which is usually on a phone.

That's how every listing of mine is presented, at my cost: professional photos, drone, a walkthrough video and a staging consultation. The drone shows the lot, the street and what's nearby. The video lets a buyer walk your home before they book a showing. The staging consultation points out what to move, remove or add, and most of it costs little or nothing.

Then the listing description names what your home offers that a new build doesn't, in plain words. No hype.

Some things, yes. Buyers comparing your home to a new build notice wear more than they would otherwise. But that doesn't mean a big renovation.

A pre-listing inspection shows us what a buyer's inspector would find, before a buyer finds it. Then we decide together what to fix, what to price in and what to disclose. In our market, the roof and the termite report matter a lot, because many buyers here use VA loans and those items can hold up a VA appraisal.

How fast homes sell changes by neighborhood, price and season, so I pull the current numbers for your part of Pace before we set a list date, instead of guessing.

Once you're live, you get a clear update from me every week: showings, feedback, online activity and what I recommend next. I also refresh your price analysis every month until your home sells, so your price keeps up with what the builders are doing instead of falling behind it.

• Pricing only against old resale sales. Buyers are also looking at what builders are offering today.
• Hiding the upgrades. If the listing doesn't name them, a buyer comparing to a design center won't know they're there.
• Skipping the photos, drone and video. A model home is polished. A dim phone photo loses that comparison.
• Ignoring the yard. A finished yard is one of the clearest things a resale home has over a new build.
• Waiting too long to adjust. Builders change their offers. A price that made sense at launch can fall behind.

Here's an example of how I lay out the steps. It shows the process, and it isn't a real client's story.

• First meeting. Your goals and your timeline, and a walk through your home.
• Pricing. Plan A, B and C side by side, built on nearby resale sales and current builder offers.
• Getting ready. Pre-listing inspection, staging consultation and any repairs we agree are worth doing.
• Before launch. Photos, drone, walkthrough video, your home's own website and paid Facebook ads, all ready at once.
• Launch. Everything goes live together, with an open house the first weekend.
• Every week after. Updates from me, plus a price check every month until it sells.

If you're moving because of new orders, read how to sell your house when you get PCS orders. If your next home is a new build, my post on having your own Realtor for new construction covers the buying side.

Can a resale home in Pace compete with new construction?

Yes. A finished yard, upgrades already in place and a faster move-in are real advantages. The listing has to make them clear.

Do builder incentives affect what my home is worth?

They can. Buyers weigh what builders are offering against your price, so I price your home against current builder offers as well as recent resale sales.

Do I need to renovate to compete with a new build?

Usually not. A pre-listing inspection shows what matters, and a staging consultation handles most of the rest at little or no cost.

How do I know what my Pace home is worth?

Start with a free home value analysis built on recent nearby sales and priced against the new construction your buyers are also touring.

Vivian Corwin is a bilingual Realtor and Military Relocation Professional with IXL Real Estate Florida in Pensacola, FL, helping military and relocating families buy and sell homes across Pensacola, Pace, Milton, Gulf Breeze, and Navarre. I'm a Pricing Strategy Advisor and a Certified Real Estate Negotiator. Let's talk about your goals and your timeline before you decide anything.

See selling your home in Pace, get a free home value analysis, or schedule a time to talk with Vivian.