Sanguine Sellers
Selling Your Home
Real estate is a huge topic in these days of turned-down markets, short sales, and foreclosures. However, one thing is for sure-people move for all kinds of reasons which keeps the real estate cycle in continued motion.
First, the hard truth-some sellers, and we only mean some, are, in a word, stuck. During the time they have lived in their home, they have used, abused, and, otherwise, neglected every square inch of it. They have not improved, updated, or simply maintained their property during their "stay." At the point they decide to move on and put their home on the market, they believe that someone will actually pay them a lot of money to take it off their hands. Let's just say there are times when we are completely surprised and a buyer will actually offer to take this type of home off a seller's hands. However, more often than not, most of these homes either do not result in a sale, or if they do, take a long time to sell and result in less dollars in the seller's pocket, oftentimes accompanied by numerous price reductions.
Then there are the "typical" sellers who have great intentions of putting their nicely maintained, well-kept home on the market. These sellers are ready to go and sincerely believe that the only thing missing is the For Sale sign in the yard. In some limited cases, this is true, and the price needs to reflect this and the local market conditions at the time. However, just because a home has been well-maintained does not mean décor from the 1980s is "in," or that wooden spindles work as room dividers, or that biscuit-colored appliances are "neutral."
So, why should a seller expect a buyer to pay for a home that is unappealing, outdated, or essentially used-up? Quite simply, a seller should not think this way and a good Realtor will explain this so there are no unreasonable expectations, abysmal results, and hurt/angry feelings in the end when the house either doesn't sell or sells for a rock bottom price.
Keep in mind--price needs to reflect condition. The two largest reasons a home sells (or does not) is the relationship between price and condition. Want a buyer? Think like a buyer. In a strong buyer's market with high inventory, like today's market, improving the condition is paramount to at least reducing, if not eliminating common buyer objections. Some sellers feel that because their house is in a higher-priced neighborhood or more sought-after neighborhood, it means they don't have to worry about the condition -- not true. Conversely, some sellers believe that because their home is updated and well-maintained, they can set the asking price higher than what the market says. This generally results in a much lower sales price than had it been properly price-positioned from Day 1.
Pricing of a home is integral to the entire process and we always factor this into our pricing recommendation for each home. A pair of new shoes makes a person feel great, and paying to get the top of the line makes them feel even better! Therefore, we always encourage our clients to look at the top of the line with regard to making their home appealing and work from there. We provide an improvements report after a thorough evaluation of a home and then give our sellers the choice to do 1) nothing, 2) a few things, or 3) everything we suggest. Based on their choice, we provide recommended pricing for each of these categories.
In defense of sellers, it is not easy to listen to your home being critiqued, receiving a list of recommendations for improvements, and finding the time, money, or motivation to prepare your home for sale. However, in our Cleveland-area real estate market, which is a tough one not unlike most others, we believe it is essential for us to open up sellers' minds. Therefore, if you are considering putting your house on the market, we highly advise you to look at your home with a critical eye. Then start to look at the home magazines while you stand in the grocery cashier line, watch a few shows on HGTV, and ask yourself what you don't like about your home, and last, but certainly NOT least, with a more critical than your own eye, make sure you choose a Realtor that is aware of everything we are addressing in this blog.
My assumption in writing this, of course, is that an owner wants to sell a home when a For Sale sign is placed in the front yard. However, our experience has been that owners and Realtors do just that-place a For Sale sign in the yard and nothing or little else!
Therefore, our words of wisdom are as follows: Don't be a typical seller...look at your home with a critical eye AND choose a Realtor wisely.
Date: Tuesday, January, 20th 2009 @ 09:40:41 PMViews: 252
Be the First to Comment on this Post!.