Steps to Selling A Home in Today's Market

Steps to Selling A Home in Today's Market

1.  In today's market, pricing is the absolute, the most important thing to consider.  You need to be competitive and sometimes that means competing with foreclosures and short sale prices.  Now, I know that is simply not what you want to hear, but it's true nevertheless.  If your home is priced too high, you may never get a buyer to step foot inside your door.  Why would they, when everyone is looking for a bargain and your price tells them it's not your home!  Let me give you an example:

    Buyers determine value by comparison shopping.  They look at the price of your home based on its features and upgrades and compare it with features and upgrades of similar homes that have sold recently or are currently on the market.

    So, if you were going to purchase a new stereo system, and one store had that system for $500 and another store had the same stereo for $500 but it had a cassette deck and a turn table for your old vinyl records, which would be more valuable?  The stereo with the upgrades, of course! 

    But now, the first store put the stereo with no upgrades on sale for $250.  Which would be a better value then?  The stereo with the lower price because you can buy your own turn table and CD player probably for less and have it be more custom to you!

So you can see that if you want to increase value you either have to lower the price or add upgrades and features.  This applies directly to the sale of your home.

2.  Unclutter your life! and your home.  It's difficult for prospective buyers to separate what they see and what is under all of that stuff.  Believe it or not, there is also such a thing as too much furniture that can make the rooms look smaller.  Please keep your knick-knacks, etc. to a minimum so the space will have a more neutral feeling to it. 

3.  I know sometimes it's hard, but you need to keep your home in good condition for showing at a moments notice.  This may include changing some habits such as smoking.  If you smoke indoors, a buyer can definitely tell and this detracts from the quality of your home.

4.  Now it's time for open houses.  It is imperative that you allow your home to be seen and an open house is a good way to accomplish that very thing.  Usually the frequency of the open houses is two times per month.  In the beginning I recommend possibly one or two more.  In the past, Sundays have been the open house day, but in today's market you have to add Saturdays and a weekday such as Thursday.  Of course this will not all be in one weekend, unless you wish, and will vary from week to week. 

It is my job to coordinate these things with you to ensure a smooth process and make it easy on your existing life.  If you have any questions or concerns at any time, don't hesitate to call or email me.

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website