Here's a number that should change how you think about pricing your home: sellers who accept an offer within the first 30 days walk away with 98% of their original asking price. Sellers whose homes sit for more than 121 days settle for 89%.
On a $500,000 home, that's the difference between netting roughly $490,000 and roughly $447,000 — more than $40,000 left on the table.
The temptation to "just see what happens"
Every seller has heard some version of this advice: list a little high, see what happens, you can always come down. It feels low-risk. Worst case, you adjust the price in a few weeks, right?
The data says otherwise. Here's what happened with homes sold across Carteret County this year, broken down by how long they sat on the market before selling:
| Days on Market | Share of Sales | Avg. Sale Price vs. Original List Price |
|---|---|---|
| 0-30 days | 44% | 98.05% |
| 31-60 days | 14% | 93.69% |
| 61-90 days | 10% | 95.09% |
| 91-120 days | 9% | 92.07% |
| 121+ days | 23% | 89.44% |
Two things jump out.
First, speed and price aren't a trade-off — they move together. The homes that sold fastest also sold closest to their original price. That's the opposite of what most sellers assume when they price high "to be safe."
Second, nearly 1 in 4 homes (23%) took more than four months to sell — and those sellers gave up the most ground.
Why this happens
It's simple: every extra week on the market is a week where a fresh, well-priced listing can pull a buyer's attention away. In today's market, buyers have real choices — and they don't have to settle for a home that feels overpriced when something comparable, and better priced, is one click away.
The takeaway for sellers
Pricing a home isn't just about picking a number you'd be happy with. It's about picking the number that gets serious buyers in the door in the first 30 days — because that's where nearly all the leverage lives.
"Testing the market" with a high number isn't a neutral, no-cost experiment. It's a decision that, on average, costs sellers real money and time.
If you currently have your home on the market and it hasn't sold, a price improvement is likely a smart strategy. Don't beat yourself up! In a shifting market, pricing higher than market value is common. The key is taking action now!
If you're getting ready to list, the most valuable conversation you can have with your agent isn't "what's the highest number we could ask" — it's "what number reflects true market value, allowing us to sell quickly and for top dollar?"
The takeaway for buyers
Not every home gets priced right the first time, but a price improvement is often the moment a motivated seller resets to meet the market — which makes the home worth a second look for buyers. If you're in the market and only checking new listings, could your perfect property be hiding in plain sight — already listed but recently reduced?
Click HERE for a list of MCKRE homes with recent price improvements in Carteret County:
Curious what your home could sell for in today's market? Reach out to the MCKRE team for a data-backed pricing consultation grounded in real, local Carteret County sales activity.
Data reflects residential sales activity across Carteret County, NC (current year). Figures represent averages across all tracked sales and may not reflect the outcome of any individual property.