A Full Service Professional
Home sellers may be lured by the promises of agents that offer to list and sell your home for a discount commission. But consider the advantages of using a full service broker who will represent your best interests in the transaction without cutting corners.
A full service real estate broker will be informed about the current trends in your local market. He or she will share valuable information about the selling price of comparable properties, to help you determine a realistic price for your home. If your home needs repair prior to listing, a reputable local contractor will be recommended. Buyers will be pre-qualified and personally escorted through your home. After showing your house, your broker will give you feedback from buyers and agents, negotiate the price and terms of the purchase contract when an offer comes in, schedule the home inspection and coordinate the closing.
You may not receive adequate professional or personal attention if the agent feels they owe you less because you are paying them less. It is to your advantage to engage the full services of a real estate broker who will give 100 percent to guide you through the complex process of selling your home.
Dog Houses
A family pet often represents a major challenge when a house is being marketed. Your family may call your large dog "Fido"--but your real estate agent calls him "Fang"! This is a sensitive issue for a real estate agent to communicate to sellers.
Even though he is just doing "his job", a dog's bark will sound ferocious to anyone who is knocking at the door. This is usually a good thing, but when your home is on the market, real estate agents will be bringing a lot of strangers to the door. Most agents are concerned about the unpredictability of dogs they don't know. When they are greeted by a barking dog, they may not be willing to enter the house unless the owner is at home. If your dog is confined to part of the house, such as a basement, be sure to put up a sign informing people of that fact. Talk with your real estate agent about the best way to manage your pet while your house is being shown, and make sure that this information is included in the MLS listing
House Odors
What is "H.O."? You can probably guess--it means "home odors".
Be careful of odors in your home. If your family room smells stuffy and stale, or if your cat or dog has left a distinctive odor in the hallway, take action by eliminating the source of the odor rather than merely treating the effects. Smells have a powerful effect on the way people react to a house, and no amount of room freshener or vanilla on the light bulbs can mask a serious odor problem. In fact, such remedies may draw attention to the problem. We have seen homes with an odor problem languish unsold on the market for months or sell for significantly less than comparable homes in the neighborhood.
If you think that you may have a problem, talk candidly with your real estate agent. Your agent should be able to offer some constructive suggestions, and perhaps refer you to a professional who can help banish H.O. from your home!
House Odors and Selling
Do you have a dog or cat that lives indoors with the family? A pet can pose a problem when your property is listed for sale. Even if prospective buyers have pets of their own that smell just like yours, they may be repelled by animal odors as they tour your home. If you have a pet odor problem, you should hire a professional to clean and deodorize the furniture and/or carpets that have been affected. Check the cat box frequently and keep the kitty litter fresh.
Some people have allergies to pet hair or irrational fears of certain animals, so it is a good idea to put dogs or cats outside or confine them to one area when your house is being shown. It is hard for buyers to appreciate your home through puffy, watery eyes or in between sneezes! Even if the house is exactly what they want, your chances of selling it will be diminished if the buyers are afraid of being attacked by Fido.
Houses and Pets
Many real estate agents are animal lovers and have pets of our own, but we have all shared stories of having our fingers or ankles nipped by furry creatures during a showing. We have opened the front door to the home we are showing only to have a purebred Persian kitten scoot toward the nearest busy street.
If you have pets and are going to put your house on the market, be sure to work out the showing arrangements carefully. It is important for us to be able to communicate to our colleagues what to expect when they pass through your front door. It is rare for pets to pose significant problems, but big dogs can be menacing. Buyers or agents may be allergic or even a little phobic about dogs or cats.
It is difficult to get a buyer excited about your home if he or she is sneezing continuously or unwilling to cross the threshold because your dog is barking away intruders. If your agent knows there might be a problem, they can arrange ahead of time for you to walk the dog, vacuum the cat dander or do whatever is necessary to make sure that the showing goes smoothly.
Termites
Most home purchase agreements have clauses that deal with termites. After the agreement is ratified, a termite inspection is arranged. Before the closing can occur, the sellers must be able to produce papers signed by a licensed exterminator stating that the house is free of infestation and that any termite damage has been repaired.
Before you sign an agreement to buy or sell a home, you should read the termite clause and be sure that you understand it. Who selects the exterminator and pays for the inspection? If bugs are found, who pays for the treatment? Are the sellers obligated to repair any damage and have they placed a limit of the dollar amount they will spend on those repairs? If treatment is required, the buyers may want a chance to discuss the options with the pest control company, especially if someone in the family is sensitive to the chemicals used to control the termites. Ask about the exterminator's guarantees or service contract options.
A Beautiful Yard
Many people wait until they are about to sell their home before they put energy and attention into improving the landscaping. Then in a desperate attempt to create instant curb appeal, they call in a professional landscaper and spend a lot of money making the yard beautiful for the next owners to enjoy.
Why wait until you are ready to move to enhance your surroundings? Even if you don't want to take on a major project, you can plant a few bushes and bulbs each year. You can get plants that bloom at different times of the year, many of which don't need a tremendous amount of care. There are several benefits to this approach. You will be able to enjoy your improvements yourself, and you will profit more from your sale if you haven't invested a lot of money in your yard right before the transaction. Well-landscaped lawns tend to increase the real estate values in the whole neighborhood, and can result in a more rapid increase in the equity you have in your home!
An Attractive Approach
First impressions count! Do you remember your first impressions of your present home? What made you want to buy it? The features or amenities that first attracted you are probably the same ones that will sell your home.
Prospective buyers' first impression of your home is the feeling they get when approaching your property. Each home has its own unique features--trees and shrubs which soften structural lines, unusual architectural features, such as bay windows, or a beautifully landscaped entrance. Whether your home is modern or elegant traditional, the approach to your home makes a statement. Since most buyers are looking for a home that has both charm and class, it pays to keep your grounds well-maintained and attractive. If the exterior appearance of your home and yard is pleasing, buyers will want to see the interior.
Brighter is Better
Sometimes a real estate agent will walk into a home that is basically attractive, yet communicates the feeling that something is lacking. Then the agent notices that all of the drapes are closed, interior lights are off and there is a lot of overgrown shrubbery blocking the sunlight that might otherwise pour through the windows.
A dark house is not as appealing to most buyers as one that is flooded with light. As a part of your preparations to market your home, try to maximize the light in your home. Make sure that all the windows are clean and the drapes are open when the house is being shown. A fresh coat of light paint can do a lot to brighten up the interior. If your house has very dark paneling, and you do not wish to repaint the walls, you may want to consider adding additional lamps. Your real estate agent may be able to provide other simple and cost-effective ideas about how to maximize your home's appeal.
Upgrade Before You Sell
Real estate agents sometimes receive calls from homeowners asking for advice on what they should do to prepare their house to go on the market. They may have settled for living in a "less than optimal" circumstance for years, and are now going to spend money to make it nice for someone else to enjoy.
If you are considering painting, updating the kitchen, landscaping, or making any other improvements that will increase your home's re-sale value, think about making those improvements while you are still there to enjoy them. Create your own dream kitchen, master suite or spa, build an outdoor living room or restore your wood floors now. Improving your property will make your home more enjoyable, help maintain the property values in your neighborhood, and expedite the sale of your home when you are ready for a move.
Competitive Pricing
You have seen it all over the years--interest rates rise and fall, sales prices escalate and decline. No matter what phase the market is in, it is always important to price your home in your area competitively. How can you price your home with confidence?
The first step is to contact a professional real estate agent for a comparative market analysis. The agent will look at recent sales of comparable homes in your area and give you information about other properties that are currently on the market. By comparing the size, location and condition of your home to the competition, your agent can help you determine how much to ask for your home. Even in an active market, an inflated price may frighten prospective buyers away. A house that is over-priced can take additional weeks or months to sell, and the final sale price may even be lower than if the sellers had started out more realistically. The price is based on market conditions, comparable sales, and your agents years of experience in the marketplace.
Sellers Beware
Here is a scenario for sellers to avoid. You contact a real estate agent to list your home and the agent suggests that you might get more for your house than comparable homes on the market. The agent assures you that it only takes finding one person who is willing to pay your price!
Some agents approach a listing appointment as if they are bidding for your home. The unfortunate result is that you start out with an unrealistic opinion of your home's value. There is often a strong temptation to work with a person who says what you want to hear. An experienced, reputable real estate agent will back up their opinion of your home's value with hard data. The agent should give you information about the listing price of homes that are currently on the market, and recent selling prices of similar properties in your immediate area.
Even the most heroic marketing efforts won't work on a property that is obviously overpriced, (except in the most exaggerated of seller's markets.) Even if you find a buyer who is willing to pay more than your home is worth, the sale could fall apart when the appraisal comes in lower than the agreed-upon price. Listen to everything, but be careful!
The Listing Agent
Only approximately 2% of all listings nationwide are sold by the listing agent. When you list your house with me, I will try my best to sell it myself, but more importantly, I will simply get it sold.
Colleagues in my firm or real estate agents who are affiliated with a cooperating broker may sell my listings. This is why I work hard to maintain a reputation for being very professional and easy to work with. I make the homes I list as easy as possible for other real estate agents to preview or show to buyers.
When you select a real estate agent to market your property, you are hiring them not only for their list of prospective buyers, but for their ability to tap the lists of other people in the business. I constantly lobby among my competition, asking if they have seen my listings, getting feedback and urging them to add my listings to the short lists that they show when they have a prospective buyer.
