Saturday, July 4th, 2009
- Never turn down a showing even if you’re cooking or have company or the house is messy. Tell the Agent why the house is not at its best but let the Agent show the house. Coming back in two hours or two days might not be an option. Some Buyers have very limited time off or are in from out of town and their Agent is showing them property over a wide geographic region or the Buyers may fall in love with the Builder’s Model in a new construction neighborhood. If you turn down the showing, you may never get a 2nd chance.
- Do not leave negotiating room when you price your house. If the Buyers need closing costs, they can be added back into the price of the house. The lower you price your house, the larger the number of Buyers who will want to see your house. Most Buyers looking at resale homes today are looking for a bargain. The best thing that can happen is that you get multiple offers.
- Your house needs to be clean and uncluterred even if it needs updating. Most Buyers buy with emotion and a dirty and/or cluttered home is a turn-off. Take a look at some nearby model homes to see how the small bedrooms are furnished. Too much furniture in a room makes the room look small. Too much stuff in a closet makes the closet look small.
- Light is your friend! Use the maximum allowed wattage light bulbs in fixtures and open the curtains and blinds. Dark houses seem sad and Buyers buy with emotion even if they won’t admit it.
- All the documentation needed by the Buyer’s Agent needs to be readily available either online or dispayed in the house. Uncertainty makes Buyers hesitate. Is the house now in a flood plain now that the flood plain maps have been redrawn? What is planned for the adjacent vacant land? What are the HOA rules? What does the Seller Disclosure say?
You goal is to make your house easy to buy! You want to create such a sense of urgency in your Buyers that they want to skip the rest of the houses on their list and go back to the office immediately and write a offer NOW before somebody else does. That way the Buyers never see that beautifully decorated model home with all the $$$$ Builder incentives.
Tags: Home Staging, Pricing, Selling a Home
Posted in Housing Market, Sell a House | No Comments »
Friday, June 26th, 2009
Despite the national news media, houses are selling in Cedar Park but not at “pie in the sky” prices. The following suggestions will help you sell your house at a “fair” price if you are truly motivated to sell:
- Hire a real estate agent who will be HONEST with you and then LISTEN to your agent.
- If possible, agree to use the same agent to buy your next house or let the agent do a referral to an agent in you destination city before asking the agent for any kind of commission discount. Keep in mind that your agent needs to earn a living and has up front marketing expenses plus you want to be your agent’s first priority.
- Price your house at your bare bones rock bottom price from day 1 with a comment directed to the Buyer that “If you need closing costs paid, please add to price.” This will get your property shown to more buyers and create a sense of urgency in the Buyer’s Agent and their Client.
- Your house must show like a Builder’s Model Home because Builder Homes are your main competition. Have yard sales, donate unused items and/or rent storage space to de-clutter your home.
- Ask your agent to help you with staging and furniture arrangement and put excess furniture in storage. Use throws and throw pillows to camouflage worn furniture.
- Replace burnt out light bulbs and use the maximum wattage bulbs allowed by your light fixtures.
- DO all those minor repairs that you have been meaning to get to.
- CLEAN EVERYTHING. Your home needs to sparkle!
- Remove (and replace if necessary) anything that is attached to the home that you do not want to include in the sale.
- Offer a Home Warranty. Your Seller’s coverage is free unless you use it and your Seller’s coverage could save you money when inspections are done and repair issues are found. Chances are that your Buyer will request a Home Warranty so you might as well benefit from it.
- When you get an offer, have your agent speak with the Buyer’s Agent and the Buyer’s Lender before negotiating and/or signing an offer. If you get more than one offer, work with the Buyer who is strongest financially even though the strongest Buyer may not have offered the highest price. Today the challenge is getting a house closed in a timely manner once it is under contract.
- Do NOT enter into a contract to buy another house until your house is under contract and preferably past the option period.
- Do NOT schedule the closing of your current house and the purchase of your new home on the same day. Closings are not running as smoothly as they did 2 years ago. Have contingency plans. Keep in mind that the containerized moving companies such as “Pods” or “Pack Rats” offer one month free storage.
Tags: Real Estate Market, Selling a House
Posted in Homes, Sell a House | No Comments »
Avg. Sales Price: $203,773
Avg. Days on Market: 59
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