Setting Price in a Shifting Market

And if your home has been on the market for more than two weeks, you had better come up with a new plan.

"As a rule of thumb, if you're trying to sell a property and you don't get any offers and no traffic in two to three weeks, you priced it too high," Rubida said. "If you've had it on the market a month and you've had plenty of traffic and no offers, you've probably priced it too high."

If you're a buyer, agents also recommend looking at how long the property has been on the market. If it's been more than a month, "you can be a little more aggressive," Leifer said.

As a buyer, once you've look at similar properties and days on the market, start scrutinizing the house.

Is it a resale or new construction? Where exactly is it? Have there been any improvements? Do the bathrooms and kitchen need work? You should adjust the price offer up or down depending on the answers.

When the time comes to make the offer, you have to decide whether you're going to go over or under the asking price.

There's no doubt that since the real estate downturn, buyers have controlled the market in most neighborhoods. "Nowadays, everyone seems to come below asking price," Rubida said.

But how far below? "There's no such thing as a ridiculous offer out there anymore," said Marty Resnick, an agent with Re/Max 2000 in Rockville.

But there are guidelines. For example, Wild said he likes to offer within 15 percent of the asking price. "In my opinion, everything on the market is probably overpriced by 7 to 10 percent," he said, because of how fast prices escalated during the boom years.

Bryan said that if the research supports it, you can go 8 to 10 percent below, but he also said sellers tend to be more willing to negotiate if the offer is about 6 percent below.

Some agents caution against starting too far below the asking price.

Randy Morrow, an agent with Keller Williams Realty in Arlington, prefers not to go more than $20,000 below. "To me, anything over $20,000 below the asking price is not a fair offer," he said. "I think if it's anything below that, it gives the impression to the seller that they're trying to get something for nothing. And when you put that in the seller's head, that they're trying to take you, then the seller quite often just digs their heels in and says, 'We don't want to negotiate with these people.' "

"It's a buyer's market, but everyone wants to be treated fairly," said Leon Bailey, an agent with Exit Powerhouse Realty in Lanham.

Some agents said their clients are willing to pay at or close to asking price as long as the seller gives them a subsidy, such as closing-cost help.

Keep in mind, though, that there are some neighborhoods that are not buyer's markets. Multiple offers are not uncommon in these hot neighborhoods, which include Chevy Chase and Bethesda.

"Many, many neighborhoods are more sought-after than others," Wild said.