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Anyone can list a home for sale. You take some pictures, sign up online to any number of online home listing services, even hire a Realtor to do the job professionally using an MLS service. However, what it really takes to sell a home is to be prepared in the areas that make all the difference to buyers. Think about it. Would you want to pay $250,000 for a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom home in a neighborhood where all the other houses on the street are going for $220,000? Of course not! Does it sound appealing to walk through a home with scuffmarks and pet smells and could imagine living there? Signs point to NO. The other thing is this: if potential buyers or prospects cannot get in to see your place at convenient times for them and their agents, how can you expect them to be interested in the property?
Price! Price! Price!
Four years ago, you might have heard the familiar phrase “Location! Location! Location!” but that has changed. Now, more than ever, it is all about price. When a home seller prices his or her home, they are doing much more than just putting the property on the market. In fact, they are advertising their motivation for selling the home. If you see a home on the market that is advertised at forty percent less than the other homes on the street, something has got to be wrong with it, right? Well at least there will be questions raised and there will definitely be a loss of some prospective buyers who will not even take an unrealistically priced property seriously.
Excellent, Good or Fair Condition?
It goes without saying that potential buyers want to see a home in top-notch condition. Not only does there need to be solid structure, strong foundation and intact systems like plumbing, electrical and heating/cooling – but aesthetically too, the home must be appealing. All too often sellers have not considered fixing up the home to meet even the most basic standards of cleanliness and functional condition.
Imagine your home being showcased on one of those television design programs. How would it appear on camera? Would there be “oohs” and “aahs” or “blahs”? Will the wood floor that has not been cleaned and polished look bland and uninspiring? Would the kitchen with clutter and too much junk lying around be unappealing? Of course it would! You want to set up your place so that buyers can not only want to imagine themselves in it but then set it up in a way so that they are able to actually envision living there. These days with inventory relatively low, demand low and housing prices on the decline, the best combination for the strongest selling success is a home that is priced right and is in the best condition. In fact, those are the primarily the homes that are moving.
Open Invitations for Access
Nothing can be worse for a seller than to have a prospective buyer be interested in the home but back off because they were unable to view the home or access the property at a convenient time. Many sellers often do not want to go through the seemingly inconvenient steps of keeping the home in “showing” condition (especially for those sellers still living on the premises) so they inadvertently create access issues for buyers and agents.
The single best way to avoid the potential pitfall of not being prepared in this sense is to remain as accessible as possible. Of course this goes without saying for properties that are vacant but even in those cases, be sure to be flexible. Allow 24-hour access to vacant properties by provided a lock-box key that real estate agents may access once they have obtain the code from you. Your willingness to show the home and show it often shows that you are a serious seller and are interested in accommodating the convenience of potential buyers.
Keep in mind that you should maintain the exterior of the home as well as the entrance, so as to make it a warm and inviting environment that entices buyers into wanting to see more. If you have had pets on the home, remove them and attempt to remove all traces of them. Clean up personal clutter and also try to show the home’s best attributes so that the buyers can visualize themselves in the home.
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