Pricing Downtown Madison WI Condos

Sellers always want to know how to price their Downtown Madison condos and likewise buyers always want to know if they are getting a reasonable price. Well of course there is no definitive answer to this question because Market Price is actually determined by what a specific buyer is willing to pay for specific downtown Madison condos.

Value is in the Downtown Madison Package

Every downtown Madison condo is pretty much unique and while sellers try to be competitive, each condo is going to have advantages and drawbacks that a good professional real estate agent is going to take into consideration when advising sellers on price matters. Where the condo is located; what floor it is on; what amenities are offered; how the condo is itself is appointed; what the parking and storage situation is… this list can go on and on. So what we can establish is shopping for downtown Madison condos is a very personal decision that balances value against cost. Most of my buyers start out with a budget in mind, but quickly realize that a budget range probably makes more sense as they evaluate one condo “package” against another.

These Downtown Madison Condos have recently been listed for over $400,000.

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History gives us a Clue

Let me preface this first by saying that history paints with a very broad brush. The advantage of the broad brush is that it typically incorporates the good and the bad —and in the grand scheme of things this gives us a snapshot of condos in downtown Madison  rather than a completed portrait.

The Process

So what does history have to say about the condos in downtown Madison? Well we can break downtown condos into two price categories: $250,000- $400,000 (Group A) and $400,001 to $800,000 (Group B.) In this particular example, I looked at downtown Madison condos that have sold over a nine month period.

What I wanted to explore was two relationships: List Prices to Assessed Values and List Prices to Sold Prices. The results of this snapshot in time would be expected to fairly represent about two thirds* of all downtown Madison condos sold in the period. This is kind of the “belly of the data” and it is expected that there would be “fliers” or values that for one reason or another are outside of this range.

The Results

List Price Compared to Assessed Value for Downtown Madison

• Downtown Madison Condos in Group A on average were listed at 117% of their most current assessed value. This ran from 144% to 97%. The median value was 117%, meaning that there were as many values above 117% as there were below 117%.
• Downtown condos in Group B on average were listed at 122% of their most current assessed value. This ran from 142% to 100%. The median value was 121%.

Sold Price Compared to List Price

• Condos on the Madison isthmus in Group A on average sold for 100% of their list price. This ran from 144% to 97%. The median value was 117%.
• Capitol area downtown Madison Condos in Group B on average sold for 99% of their list price. This ran from 107% to 90%. The median value was 100%.

So what does this mean in English?

Higher priced condos tend to be listed a bit higher compared to their assessed values than their lower priced cousins, but tend to sell for a lower percentage of their list price. This is not too surprising because there is usually more room to wiggle with the higher priced condos.

Those Pesky Medians

The median value is mostly useful when we compare it to the mean or average value. This comparison tells us something about how the data is “distributed” around the average. If the mean is greater than the median, it usually means there are some unusually high values in the data set. Likewise, if the mean is lower than the median, it usually indicates that there are some unusually low values in the data set.

So, again what does that mean in English? For Group A downtown Madison condos, prices were fairly evenly distributed across the price range, which made finding a great selection easy to do; and this year, Group B list prices were also evenly distributed.

In the Final Analysis for living in Downtown Madison

So when all is said and done, the higher priced Group B condos tend to be priced a little higher compared to their assessed values than are the more moderately priced Group A condos. Group A tends to sell for about 100% of their list values while the Group B condos tend to sell for about 99%. The best news is that in both groups, there is a more price-balanced selection of condos and that means more buyers can find condos in their respective price ranges.

*One standard deviation

Nelson & Associates will Help You Find the Perfect Downtown Condo

Nelson & Associates Realtors can help you navigate the prices and values of downtown Madison condos. Now that condo prices have started to modestly increase, buyers can be more confident that their downtown Madison condos will hold their value.  Contact me today. The selection is good, interest rates are still relatively low and I can go to work for you right away!