Many renters are now eager to escape urban apartments in favor of suburbia. One factor is the quest for more space, especially among those working remotely or schooling their kids from home due to COVID-19. Another is that mortgage rates are hovering near historic lows.

The result is that in popular neighborhoods where listings are in short supply, properties are flying off the market. That’s making owners more self-confident. But real estate specialists caution sellers about the perils of pricing too high.

Mary Bazargan, a listing agent in Washington, D.C., explains why it’s foolish for sellers to price too boldly -- even where inventory is low and houses are selling quickly.

“When we price a new listing conservatively, we’re getting multiple offers, and these homes are often selling above list price. But if we push the price aggressively high, the home tends to sit on the market for a while,” says Bazargan, who works for Redfin, a national real estate brokerage.

Eric Tyson, a personal finance expert, agrees that those who attempt to test the market with too high a price typically attract fewer prospects.

“Buyers who shop with an agent usually shop with a top pricing point in mind. They won’t see properties above that pricing ceiling,” says Tyson, the co-author of “House Selling for Dummies.”

Moreover, due to internet sleuthing, buyers are increasingly savvy about property valuations. Many are annoyed by the appearance of greed on the part of sellers and refuse to bargain with those who ask too much.

“Remember that Americans don’t like to haggle. So don’t count on buyers engaging with you in multiple rounds of negotiation,” Tyson says.

Here are a few other pointers for sellers:

-- Research local valuations before hiring an agent.

Sid Davis, a Utah-based real estate broker, notes there are now a number of websites that offer free and instantaneous assessments of home values. Among the best known are Zillow and Redfin.

But it's unrealistic to look to such “fast pricing” sites for a definitive answer on the current worth of your place. After all, they typically rely heavily on publicly available data on recent home transactions. And some jurisdictions restrict or delay the release of such statistics. Still, such sites can sometimes give you a fair estimate.

“At least they’ll help you get into the right ballpark on the current value of your house. This gives you a starting point for a pricing discussion with the agents you interview,” says Davis, the author of “A Survival Guide to Selling a Home.”

Another way to gain a feel for prevailing prices is to attend open houses.

“In 15 minutes, you can visit two or three nearby open houses -- if only virtually -- and get a sense of pricing realities in your neighborhood. You can also get a preliminary comparison on the condition of your home versus rival properties,” Davis says.

-- Talk to multiple agents before choosing one.

When planning to sell, many owners instinctively turn to a friend or relative in the real estate field. But Tyson cautions against hiring someone from your inner circle, even if that person is an active agent in your neighborhood.

“We all want to hear how wonderful our house is and how much it’s worth. That makes it very hard for your friend or relative to recommend a realistic price tag,” Tyson says.

Interview at least three agents working in their area, and don’t pick one who relies on hunches.

“Ask each agent for an honest evaluation of both the condition of your place and its present value. Make sure each agent shows you the comparable sales they used to make their price recommendation,” Tyson says.

To determine if an agent is truly active in your neighborhood, he suggests you ask for an “activity list” of all the properties the person has listed there during the prior six to 12 months.

-- Examine each agent’s track record on pricing.

Even now, many sellers don’t receive their full asking price at the closing table. But if their property was marked accurately from the outset, they should come fairly close.

“Nobody wants to suffer huge price reductions because they asked way too much at the beginning,” Davis says.

To assess an agent’s pricing recommendations, look at a few key numbers that reflect his or her track record. If the agent is routinely making accurate price recommendations, there should be relatively little disparity between the original list price and the final closing price.

“Sellers shouldn’t have to knock down their price just to get their property sold. In most cases, their home should sell for no less than 5% under the asking price,” Davis says.

He suggests you ask prospective listing agents to show you “list-to-sale” numbers for all the homes they’ve sold during the last 90 days.

-- Don’t let your pride get in the way of accurate pricing.

Some people assume listing agents are motivated to price low with an eye to quick sales. But Davis says the greater risk is that occasional agents will recommend too high a price in hopes of flattering you into working with them.

“This practice is known in the real estate field as ‘buying a listing,'” he says.

Overpricing can even hurt owners in an area with few homes on the market.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re selling in a neighborhood that’s hot, cold or lukewarm. Asking way too much can easily kill your chances for a fast and successful sale,” Davis says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

COVID-19 has led to a surge in demand for suburban houses from those living in cramped urban apartments. Among the lures: extra work-at-home space and a backyard big enough for a barbecue. But many who own such suburban properties are reluctant to sell. The result? A monumental shortage of supply.

“Housing demand is robust, but supply is not, and this imbalance will inevitably harm affordability and hinder ownership opportunities,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (realtor.org).

The worsening shortage has meant ascending prices and more competition among rival buyers in many suburban areas. First-time buyers are especially frustrated in multiple bidding situations.

One potential solution for buyers is to consider a property that’s served as a rental unit.

“There’s a big stigma attached to any house renters have been occupying. That causes lots of folks to automatically reject such a place without good cause,” says Mark Nash, a real estate industry analyst.

Granted, some tenants can be rough on a place they’re leasing -- given they have less at stake in home upkeep than do owner-occupants. Yet some issues -- like soiled carpets or blemished walls -- can be merely cosmetic and easily remedied.

“A formerly rented house could be a true diamond in the rough you might obtain for a fair price despite the crush of demand,” says Nash, the author of “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home.”

But Fred Meyer, a longtime real estate broker and appraiser, cautions those considering a once-rented property to thoroughly investigate the place to ensure it doesn’t have any severe structural problems, such as a sinking foundation or a leaky roof.

Most landlords wait until their tenants leave to put their property on the market. But if a place you’re considering is still occupied by tenants, Meyer suggests you ask them about any issues.

“The tenants may be disgruntled if they’re forced to move against their will. But they have no incentive to gloss over problems with the house,” Meyer says.

What typically prompts the sale of a rental unit? Sid Davis, the author of “A Survival Guide for Buying a Home,” says many landlords eventually tire of their tenants’ demands.

Of course, some landlords hire a management company to look after their rental unit. But that can be costly and doesn’t necessarily protect them from tenant abuses.

“With or without a manager, many owners eventually want to free themselves of their white elephant to simplify their lives,” says Davis, an independent real estate broker.

Here are a few pointers for buyers pondering a rental:

-- Make doubly sure to get an in-depth home inspection.

Though many rental properties are overseen by professional managers, they rarely receive the same level of attention as owner-occupied properties. That’s why it’s critical to make any offer contingent on a satisfactory home inspection.

To locate a highly qualified home inspector, Davis recommends you ask your agent for the names of at least 10 candidates. Then interview three by phone to determine the best one. Another source for referrals is the American Society of Home Inspectors (homeinspector.org).

Avoid choosing an inspector who’s also in the home improvement business.

“That represents a major conflict of interest, especially if the guy presses you to hire him for repairs,” Davis says.

-- Seek cost estimates for all the repairs you’ll need.

Davis once owned six rental houses. This taught him that tenants often fail to tell their landlord about problems unless they become serious.

“Perhaps the dishwasher has malfunctioned for many months. But the landlord never heard about the problem until a home inspector finds that the dishwasher leaks and must be replaced, along with the subflooring beneath,” he says.

Davis says the prospective buyers of a rental property should determine in advance how much needed repairs will cost. He recommends they get estimates for all the repairs on the inspector’s list before finalizing their bid. Then they should make sure these expenses are factored into the price they negotiate.

-- Don’t let a good deal blind you to a weak location.

In many popular neighborhoods, buyers now greatly outnumber sellers. Yet even now, few purchasers prowling the market are willing to consider a rental, says Ashley Richardson, an agent affiliated with the Residential Real Estate Council (crs.com).

“These days, most buyers only want a house in pristine condition -- one babied by its owners. Very few people will take a ‘fixer’ because of all the hassles that might bring. That means you’ll have fewer competitors in pursuit of a fair deal,” says Richardson, who sells homes through the Long & Foster real estate firm.

You could get a doubly favorable deal if you find an only superficially problematic house in an excellent neighborhood -- like one with manicured yards and well-rated neighborhood schools.

“As with all real estate, location should overtake every other priority when making your decision,” Richardson says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

The COVID crisis continues to plague the planet. There’s unrest in U.S. streets. Wildfires rage in the West. And all over the nation, the presidential election has nerves frayed.

Yet homebuyers seem as eager as ever to move forward with a purchase, making it a nearly golden season for those who wish to sell.

“Strangely, politics and bad climate events never seem to have much impact on housing markets, unless these elements are present in your immediate area,” says Tom Early, a longtime real estate broker.

More powerful motivators for home buying include demographic trends -- such as new household formations among the millennial population cohort -- and mortgage rates.

“Herds of young buyers are trying to grab the unbelievably low mortgage rates now available,” says Early, a past president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (naeba.org).

Despite economic turmoil and relatively high rates of joblessness, sellers are currently in an excellent position, says Danielle Hale, the chief economist for Realtor.com, the national home listing service.

“Buyer demand is putting sellers in the driver’s seat,” says Hale, noting that available properties remain in short supply and prices are strong.

Yet for all the positives facing sellers, many who intend to move this year feel stressed at the idea of selling during the pandemic.

“People who’ve been socially isolated for months are hunkered down in their homes, often with young kids and grown children under the same roof. That greatly complicates their selling plans and gives people panic attacks,” Early says.

Kathy Zimmermann, a broker-owner with the Re/Max realty chain, says anxiety levels are highest among sellers who face tight time limits because they’re moving for a job transfer or have already committed to buying another property. Also, those facing divorce can become particularly frazzled if a house they expected to sell quickly sits unsold longer than anticipated.

“If it’s a divorce involving a court-ordered sale, there’s usually a strict deadline,” says Zimmermann, who’s affiliated with the Residential Real Estate Council (crs.com).

Anxious home sellers often lose sleep due to their worries and sometimes bother their listing agent early in the morning after a restless night, says Zimmermann, who’s received calls and texts from worried clients as early as 5:30 a.m.

But Dorcas Helfant, a former president of the National Association of Realtors (realtor.org), says the fault for a slow-moving house often rests not with the listing agent but the owners themselves if they insist on an above-market price.

“Ask too much and potential buyers will be repelled by what they perceive as your greed,” Helfant says.

Here are a few pointers for sellers:

-- Realize that avaricious sellers often net less than they deserve.

Accurate pricing is tricky, especially in neighborhoods undergoing pricing gains, perhaps due to tight inventory. In such areas, a review of recent sales --known as “comparables” -- may not yield obvious answers.

Still, cautious pricing is all the more important at the current time, given that numerous buyers are well aware of pricing trends due to extensive internet sleuthing.

“Many people won’t waste their time trying to negotiate with someone asking too much,” Zimmermann says.

-- Face the fact that hassling your listing agent can backfire.

Zimmermann says anxious sellers can hurt themselves if they make unreasonable demands on their agent. For example, she tells how one of her clients emailed or called her at least two to three times per day, requesting a detailed update on everyone who’d expressed interest in his house and their reactions.

“He became a very high-maintenance client,” she says.

Putting a lot of pressure on your agent might seem like a helpful strategy. But it can easily hurt your sale if the agent resents your persistent inquiries. Some agents even drop clients who try to cope with their anxieties through excessive demands.

“It’s not unusual to hear about agents terminating listing agreements if the homeowners fail to cooperate,” Zimmermann says.

-- Direct your nervous energy into a cleaning blitz.

Sid Davis, a longtime broker and the author of "A Survival Guide for Buying a Home," says he’s noticed a steep decline in the cleanliness of properties offered for sale. All too often, he says, owners with busy schedules lack the time to keep a home as clean as did past generations. But the reality is that nowadays buyers are more eager than ever to acquire a spotless property to gain a “fresh start” in their lives.

Showing a home in immaculate condition can give you a competitive edge over less tidy people trying to sell in the same area.

“During the pandemic, it’s doubly hard for families with lots of people stuck at home to keep their homes exquisitely clean. But remember that most serious buyers still insist on an in-person tour before committing to a house, and slobs are punished,” Davis says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)