August 31, 2007
How to sell your home
The market in the Seattle area isn’t taking quite the beating it is in the rest of the country, but the number of homes on the market is growing – there are nearly 50,000 homes and condos for sale in western Washington now, up from about 30,000 when we launched in December. Some of that is the normal cycle of the market (more homes for sale in the summer), but not all of it.
That means more choices for home buyers, which means they can be pickier about quality and / or price. So what to do if you’re selling your place? The experts weigh in:
Greg Swann of the BloodHound Blog
Homes are being sold every day. There are fewer buyers than there were a year ago, a lot fewer than two years ago. But even though too many homes are on the market, some of them are selling.
Which ones? Those homes that offer the greatest perceived value to buyers.
And where is that value perceived? In the quality of the home or in a bargain price.
The seller of house number three can beat “the market†in one of two ways. He can refurbish the home to the quality of house number one, then undercut it on price by five or ten percent. Or he can leave the house the way it is — and cut the price by twenty percent.
1) Make your house stand out because of the price (make it more competitive than the rest).
2) Make your house spotless. Clean windows, baseboards, floors, corners, cabinets … everything.
3) If you don’t have a huge back yard, make it functional as it is. If you do have a huge back yard, offer your riding mower.
4) Make it sparkle. Do any and all reasonable (and some not-so-reasonable) repairs before it hits the market.
5) Remove any and all objections that you can before the house goes on the market. You only get one chance to make a first impression.
If all that sounds like too much, you can always just sell your home in 5 days, but I suspect that the same rules if you want to get the full value. Just last week I saw signs in Greenwood, Seattle touting “this home will sell Sunday night to the highest bidder.” I should have followed up…
August 31st, 2007 at 9:59 am
Interestingly enough, I did “sell” (I use the term “put under contract” as “sell” means “closed”) a house in 5 days a couple of months ago. I worked my clients hard, we priced the properly well and had an offer in 5 days. It can be done, but setting realistic expectations – on all sides – is crucial.
August 31st, 2007 at 10:09 am
Nice. I think most of the 5-day programs involve an auction for everyone who is present on a given day – the house sells to the highest bidder at midnight. Your way sounds better.
August 31st, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Crazy, that’s almost twice as many houses in only a half of a year!
October 30th, 2007 at 9:59 am
I like this method:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260176870547&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=016
October 30th, 2007 at 10:02 am
Adrienne, 39 cents for a magic sell your home rubber band is a total steal.