Don't overprice your home.

 

Though it might be tempting it will only cost you in the long run. There are two things you need remember about pricing your home:

 

The only reason a house sells is the price.

The only reason a house doesn't sell is the price.

 

Spend the money to get a professional's opinion of your homes value.

 

The few hundred dollars you spend hiring an appraiser could very well pay for it self many of times over. Online home value sites can give you a ballpark figure of what your home is worth, but occasionally they have been known to be tens of thousand's of dollars off the actual market value. The reason for this is because they don't have the ability to take all the homes features into account when calculating its' market value.

 

The first impression is a lasting impression.

 

You have one chance to get the attention of a potential buyer, so don't miss a golden opportunity by being unprepared. Try to appeal to a persons' sense of sight, smell and sound. There is nothing worse than opening the front door and being greeted by a dark, dingy, foul smelling house. Follow these few simple steps to help you make your home feel, look and smell fresh:

 

Allow plenty of sunlight to enter the dwelling. It's a proven fact that sunlight brightens peoples' mood.

 

Place a few scented candles through out the house to appeal to the persons' sense of smell. Be sure not to over due it.

 

Don't leave dogs and cats in the house while showing it to a potential buyer. Do everything within reason to eliminate pet odors. Not only are pet odors offensive to some, but it may also cause severe allergy attacks in some individuals.

 

Have soft music greet your potential buyers as they walk thru the front door and through out the house. We would suggest music that best fits the decor of the home. For example if your house is waterfront consider playing a CD that has the sounds of gently crashing waves on the seashore. If you're not sure what music best fits your homes decor, then go with classical or jazz.

 

Know Your Local Real Estate Market

 

The better you know your real estate market the better you will be able to position yourself against the competition. Ask yourself are property values rising or falling. Is it a buyers or sellers market? What is the average length a home is on the market before it sells? Ask people that are selling or have recently sold their home in your area about their experience. Talk to the service providers that you've hired and ask them what it's like out there.

 

Be willing to work with first time homebuyers and buyers with less then perfect credit. This might require you to offer some unconventional financing (land contract, rent to own, down payment assistance, etc.) this will significantly increase the number of people that can purchase your home. Before you offer any of these options be sure to check with your mortgage company first to see if it's feasible. As always seek competent legal advice when dealing with legal matters pertaining to legal contracts.

 

Try not to take it personal if you receive what you consider a lowball offer and don't just walk away. Come back with a counteroffer. If you've done your homework on the Internet or even better have had an appraisal done to arrive upon your asking price than you can justify your asking price. There is no reason to accept an offer that comes up significantly short of the appraised market value.

 

The reason it's a good idea to come back with a counter offer is because the buyer might be calling your bluff. They might actually be willing and able to pay you the full asking price. You just don't know until you put down your counteroffer and see what their response is. If they come back with the same lowball offer then just walk away, there wasting your valuable time. But if they come back with a higher offer, then you might have a buyer that is the real deal.

 

Negations are all about give and take until both buyer and seller are satisfied with the price and terms. Don't be shy about asking your potential buyer to show proof of funds. Any buyer that isn't willing to show you a pre-approval letter from a bank or mortgage company is more than likely just playing games and therefore are a complete waste of your time. If they state that there going to pay cash for your property, then ask for a financial statement proving it. A buyer should be willing to back up what their saying.

 

The only time you should walk away from a lowball offer is when the buyer doesn't have the means to purchase your home at a price that is acceptable to you. For example when a buyer is approved for only X amount of a mortgage and that X amount is lower then your willing to accept. Keep in mind just because a buyer shows you a pre-approval letter for such an amount doesn't necessarily mean that this is the most he or she is actually approved for. In some cases the buyer wants you to believe that the amount shown on the pre-approval letter is the maximum amount the lender has approved them for. The best thing to do in this case is to call their bluff and inform them that you simply aren't willing to take that low of an amount for your home. You would be surprised how many buyers "miraculously" come back with a new pre-approval letter with a higher loan amount. Mention to the buyer that your attorney has advised them contact their lending institution to confirm the information pertained on the pre-approval letter because you want to avoid any problems that might arise later on. It's better to do this earlier in the negotiations then to find out later about a problem that might cause the deal to fall through right before closing.

 

Don't clutter your house with space wasting junk.

 

More open space you have, more spacious and appealing your home will appear. Follow these few simple steps to de-clutter your home:

 

·         If you don't need it, give rid of it.

 

·         Don't leave the floor littered with toys.

 

·         Clean off everything from the countertops.

 

·         Stow away as much stuff as possible in boxes and out of sight.

 

·         Almost everything shows better with less furniture. Remove furniture that blocks or hampers walkways. Invest in a self storage unit if need be.

 

Remove/Replace Favorite Items.

If you want to take your favorite items with you, then remove or replace them before a potential buyer ever steps foot into your house. If the buyer never sees it, then they can't ever want it.

 

Make Minor Repairs

 

w  Patch holes in the drywall.

 

w  Replace cracked floor and counter tiles.

 

w  Fix doors and kitchen drawers that don't close properly.

 

w  Consider painting walls a neutral color. Not everyone wants to have a bathroom with hot pink walls. You don't want buyers remembering that your house is the one with the funky color in the bathroom.

 

w  Replace burned out lights

 

Clean, Clean and Clean some more

 

·         Power -wash the outside of the house.

 

·         Wash windows inside and out.

 

·         Dust and remove any cobwebs.

 

·         Clean bathtubs and showers thoroughly.

 

·         Clean out refrigerator and place a new box of baking soda inside to help remove odors.

 

·         Remove any and all mold. Mold, partially black mold has in recent years gotten a lot of attention for causing serious health problems. You might have to call in the professionals to completely eradicate it.

 

Safety

 

§  You can never be too cautious about the people you allow into your house.

 

§  When possible always have someone else with you when showing your house.

 

§  Always leave an opening between you and the person your showing your house to. You want to be able to exit quickly in any situation. Don't get cornered into a room with no place to escape.

 

§  Lock all valuables up. The person might not mean to do you harm, but that's not to say they aren't interested in your valuables. Ifyou notice the person seems disinterested in your house and more interested in looking at your belongings, this could be an indication of future problems. If you feel this is the case get their license plate number. It never hurts to be overcautious then to regret your inactions later on..