How to Get Top Dollar in Any Market

The best chance for selling your property at the highest price is within the first few weeks. Studies show that the longer a property stays on the market, the less the seller will net. Time on the market can be extended or shortened depending on market conditions when you list your property. In a sellers market a property may experience multiple offers and sell in a matter of hours. In a buyers market a property can stay on the market for months. Ask your agent what type of market your home will be experiencing. As a general rule, there are 5 main factors to accomplish the sale of your property.

Pricing Factor
The most important component in selling your home is to price your property at a competitive market value right when you list it. It is very important to price your property at a competitive market value right when you list it. The market is so competitive that even over-pricing by a few thousand dollars could mean that your house will not sell. Statistics show that properties priced close to or at market value generate better offers. This happens because buyers’ agents and buyers see the value in the property and are more motivated to make an offer early on rather than risk waiting and losing the property all together. Another interesting statistic is that the first offer is usually your best offer. The reasons for listing your property at or close to market value right from the start are:

A market priced (well priced) home Maximizes offers and the possibility of multiple offers. Increases showings. Increases agent response. Expands financing options. Generates more qualified offers. Nets more for the seller. Generates more qualified buyers.

80% of the marketing is done when you decide on what price to list your home. What you think your home is worth does not matter, what we think what your home is worth does not matter, what an appraiser said your home was worth recently does not matter, the only thing that matters is what a buyer is willing to pay for your home and buyers and professional agents will be looking at the comparables in your neighborhoods to determine their perception of market price. If you are unwilling to list your home at current market value you would be better off not putting it on the market at this time it will only languish on the market and the resulting sales price will be less than what you would have received had you priced the property correctly from the beginning.

Clean Factor
Most people are turned off by even the smallest amount of uncleanliness or odor when buying a home. Sellers lose thousands of dollars because they do not adequately clean and declutter a home. If your home is squeaky clean it will sell faster and net you thousands of dollars more. When buyers see a dirty home the underlying thought is what else in this home is not well maintained and how much money am I going to have to spend on deferred maintenance. Odors must be eliminated, especially if you have dogs, cats, young children in diapers or if you are a smoker. You may not notice the smell, but the buyers do. Odors are very costly to a seller’s net price. Because most agents have a difficult time communicating to their sellers about odor, ask your agent if your house has an odor that needs to be eliminated. If your agent approaches you regarding an odor problem, please don’t take offense. It shows your agent cares enough about you and the net dollars you will make by bringing the odor problem to your attention. Finally, since you’re planning on moving why not take this opportunity to box up and store items of clutter, so your house will appear larger and you will have a jump start on your move.

Access Factor
Agents will not show your home if access is not readily available. They do not have time to run around town all day picking up and dropping off keys. They want to sell homes! The greatest way to show a home is to have a lock box. Having a lock box that is either controlled by the seller (Put one out when an appointment is made) or made available every day or during agreed upon showing hours will provide ease of access and generate more showings. Making an appointment for your agent to personally conduct a showing of your home has many obvious benefits, BUT it is extremely important that you have an understanding with your agent that he/she will bend over backwards to accommodate any showing requests. One of the biggest complaints in our industry is the lack of timely response to phone requests for showings and worse, listing agents who are either unwilling, to busy, or too lazy to accommodate simple showing requests. Most sellers would be shocked to learn how many buyers are turned away from showings by this type of non- responsive listing agent. Make sure showing your home is a priority with your agent. Before hiring an agent you might want to place a showing request call identifying yourself as an out of area agent and see how long it takes a potential listing agent to respond and how willing that agent is to accommodate you.

When your home is being shown, please do the following:

• Keep all lights on
• Keep all drapes and shutters open
• Leave soft music playing
• Take a short walk with your children and pets
• Let the buyer be at ease and let the agents do their job

Paint & Carpet Factor
Paint and carpeting are your best improvement investment for getting a greater return on your money. Fresh Paint makes the whole house smell clean and look neat. If your house has chipped paint, exposed wood, or the paint looks faded, it is time to paint. If your carpet is worn, dirty, outdated, or an unusual color, you may need to seriously consider replacing it. Many homes do not sell because of this problem. Don't think that buyers have more money than you have to replace carpet. They don't. They simply buy elsewhere.

Front Yard Factor
Your front yard immediately reflects the inside condition of your house to the buyer. Make certain that the trees are trimmed, so the house can be seen from the street. Have the grass mowed, trimmed and edged. Walkways should be swept. Clean away debris. Remove parked cars. This all adds to curb appeal. If a buyer doesn't like the outside, they may not stop to see the inside.

For a printable version of this report click here

Acrobat Reader is required for viewing PDF files. if you don't have it click here to download a free version.