Sellers

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Important Factors In Selling

Selling your home can be an exhausting - and worrisome - experience. Last-minute walk-throughs, inconvenient calls, hopes raised by a prospective buyer and then dashed as they continue on their way - and the possibility of being stuck with two mortgages. Perhaps you've marketed your home with a real estate agent or limited service company who made attractive promises only to be sorely disappointed when your home did not sell. Or maybe you've tried to market your home "For Sale, By Owner" - only to be met with frustration having to deal with unqualified buyers and absurdly low offers. If you're not prepared, you could end up losing hundreds and even thousands of dollars in profit. When you're ready to place your home on the market, make sure you understand the process and details of selling a home. Educate yourself on all the factors that will affect your profit. Be as informed as possible so you can make the absolutely best business decisions. After all, the sale of your home is a business decision - be prepared! When selling your house, price, condition and exposure are usually the three most important factors (aside from the familiar "location, location, location" statement):

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A home is ultimately worth what someone is willing to pay for it, not necessarily what a seller wants for it. Everything else beyond that is just an estimate or opinion of value. Your asking price is typically based on a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA), and may also be based on an appraisal, both of which represent estimates of the value of your house at a given time and under specific circumstances, using different but related information sources. As an optional step, you may elect to have a certified appraiser perform an appraisal. When estimating your home's value, they take into account many factors, including square footage, construction type, style & quality, the year the house was built, the design and floor plan, the neighborhood, availability of transportation, local shopping, schools, lot size, topography, view, landscaping, and any additions or updates. Typically, an appraisal is only valid for one year, so if it takes you over a year to sell, you refinance within a year, or if there are significant changes to the property (repairs, renovations, improvements, updates, etc), you should obtain another appraisal. Appraisal costs will typically be a few hundred dollars, involving many hours to research and complete, but usually with just an hour or two actually on the premises. Your Realtor will perform a strategic marketing analysis (SMA) that explains pricing and the latest in marketing techniques and technologies. We obtain current/recent data for several homes in your area with comparable square footage, land area & characteristics, features and amenities. This correlates your house to other very similar homes that have sold in your area. This is a free service as part of the listing process, providing you with a frame of reference with respect to properly pricing your home. It's important to note that an agent for a buyer who may be interested in your house would perform a similar CMA for that buyer (most likely using the very same MLS data), and based on its results, would advise their buyer/client as to (a) whether the property appears to be overvalued, undervalued, or appropriately priced, and (b) ranges of values within which offers to purchase might be reasonable, well-received and successful, based on the buyer's own needs and circumstances, on the buyer's and their agent's interpretation of the seller's situation, needs & motivation, and on property status & condition. When determining the listing price for your property, your Realtor can help you to view your property as buyers (and their agents) would. Regardless of property location, condition or features, you'll want to foster an overall impression in the buyer's mind that your property represents a "good value". Overpricing tends to discourage many buyers from making any offer at all, because they feel it would be a "waste of time" or "insulting to the seller" to offer what they think the property is really worth. This could easily cost you a sale that may have materialized if the buyer had felt more inclined to "go for it". Conversely, under-pricing can invite "low ball" offers, since buyers may presume (a) that there may be significant problems associated with the property, such as major repairs needed, infestation, contamination or environmental concerns, neighborhood/location issues, etc., or (b) the seller is highly motivated, possibly even "anxious" or "desperate", and vulnerable to any offer that "gets them out". But worse, under-pricing leaves money on the table that should be in your pocket! The market is always changing, so it's important that your asking price is based on a recent appraisal and/or strategic marketing analysis. Your Realtor can help you price your house so that (a) it will be attractive to the broadest possible range of ready, willing & able buyers, (b) it will bring offers that closely reflect actual market value, (c) it will be competitive with other similar properties currently on the market, and (d) it will yield the best possible proceeds from the sale. As a final note, if you are evaluating more than one real estate firm for listing your property, be aware that you may receive some unexpectedly high "estimates of value" and corresponding "suggested list prices" from overly zealous agents who either (a) don't understand the market and its dynamics, or worse, (b) want to "buy" your listing by leading you to believe that they can get a higher price for you than the competition can. This latter tactic is intended to get you to "sign on the dotted line", creating a binding & irrevocable listing contract between you and that agent's firm. Then, after weeks or months of little or no interest/activity, you are asked to reduce the price to something closer to the actual market value (where it should have been priced in the first place). However, this typically means that you would have lost the "window of opportunity" as a new listing on the market; other agents would already have disregarded your "overpriced" property, and would not necessarily be inclined to show it to their buyers. Unless you're prepared to wait for the market to "catch up" to your elevated price, don't fall into the overpricing trap; while you're waiting, your expenses and mortgage payments continue, and the price of your next house may be escalating beyond your reach.

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Correcting minor/cosmetic defects before showing your house can help avoid losing buyers who might be unduly influenced by such details. In a buyer's market (when inventory is high and/or buyer competition is low), buyers feel free to be more discriminating & selective, and can be quickly "turned off" by things that could have been easily corrected by simple repairs. The better the condition of your house in relation to your asking price, the greater buyer interest and appeal it will have, the faster it will sell, and the more likely it will be that it sells at or very near your asking price. Don't discount the potential impact of "negative perceived condition". While a property that's immaculately clean, meticulously maintained, tastefully decorated and loaded with upgrades & amenities certainly bolsters appeal and perceived value, even the slightest negative factors (dirt, stains, offensive odors, leaks, broken items, chipped/peeling paint, neglected landscaping, etc) can significantly influence a buyer's assessment of acceptability and value, quickly negating many of the "positives" your property has to offer. Something as minor as dirty windows or overgrown foliage inhibiting the impact of a spectacular view could subliminally diminish an offer (if there is one) by thousands of dollars, when a few cents worth of window cleaner or a little trimming effort could have preserved/reinforced the perceived value.

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Once your house is correctly priced and in its best presentable condition, it's time to tell the world about it. You might have the most beautiful home at the best price in town, but if no one knows about it, or if it's not marketed effectively, neither price nor condition will matter! Your Realtor can broadly expose your home through public open houses, broker open houses, newspaper, radio & TV advertising, promotion in area-specific real estate publications, search engine placement, e-mail advertising campaign and by listing it in MLS (multiple listing service). These techniques (and much more), coupled with many decades of collective local area experience, are just part of the service and benefit derived from having your own personal professional Realtor . A final word about "Service Level" . Remember that real estate firms are businesses just like any other, complete with expenses, cash flow, P&L, license fees, insurance, and many other familiar operating considerations. Although ongoing costs such as advertising, for example, take big bites out of operating budgets, the sole income source is sales commissions (with a percentage to listing or selling agents, and a percentage to "the house"). Marketing, transaction management, and client service can consume significant resources (time and money), and we strive to provide the highest levels of professionalism and client support & service in return for commissions we earn. In short, you get what you pay for, and we always deliver, to meet your needs and exceed your expectations!

There are, however, "discount" brokerages out there, which purport to provide "full service" with reduced commission rates. Simple arithmetic and basic business sense dictate that with reduced income (but consistent costs) per transaction, something must be sacrificed. What typically suffers is the overall service level, particularly in critical aspects of marketing ("exposure"). a distinct disservice to sellers and buyers alike. A few dollars saved in commissions paid can be severely overshadowed and offset by missed sales opportunities, extended market time, other ongoing seller expenses, and diminished attention to the negotiation process, likely resulting in fewer dollars in the seller's pocket when all is said and done. As the old saying goes, "Not all that glitters is gold".