In the course of meeting with your listing agent, preparing your property for sale and working through the process of selling your property you should be aware of these 7 tips to help you work as a team with your Realtor. You should know that it takes a team effort to sell a property, once you sign the listing agreement it doesn’t mean you can sit back and relax and watch the show. Be involved and enjoy the process even though it maybe stressful at times.
LISTING PRICE
You have asked your listing agent to view your property and provide you with a comparative market analysis (CMA) so that you can get the best price and hope to sell in the quickest time period. Why then after reviewing the information and listening to your agent who should be educating you about the current market you still feel that your home is valued far above the recommended low to high value for the list price? While your Realtor wants to sell your house and may agree to take the listing since you want to “try” a higher price point and you have agreed that if it doesn’t work you know you will have to reduce price. Fear of leaving money on the table can be one of the seller’s biggest hurdles. A buyer may not catch that your home is over-priced but what really happens is other agents may not show your home at all, or worse yet they will use your property and it’s high price to make another property look much better to their buyer. In the Los Cabos market which is often seasonal you have spent precious time listed too high and may have to wait until next season when buyers will be back. Another mistake in over pricing is not recognizing that the current market you have decided to sell in may not bear what you have paid for the property or what you have into the construction or upgrades.
STOP HIDING THINGS FROM YOUR REALTOR
While you may worry that flaws might not be caught by the buyer they can eventually come back to bite. Don’t keep your homes flaws a secret because you don’t want it to hurt your price. A property inspection as part of the buyer due diligence process will bring it out and you’ll end up paying for it later. Touch up your cabinets from wear and tear, repair the gate that doesn’t close properly, replace or repair the window blind that won’t roll up properly, fix your leaking faucet, have that scratched up front door or molding repaired. You might be used to it but to the buyer it will look like there are many “expensive” things to fix. Go ahead and share the good the bad and the ugly details with your Realtor. They can advise you what should be fixed now and what might bring potential problems during the negotiating process.
YOUR DECOR MAY NOT BE HELPING YOU SELL YOUR HOME
It’s important to know that even though you are living in your home while it is listed for sale the buyer must be able to visualize themself there not you. You don’t have to pay for expensive home staging but you will want to declutter all rooms and remove personal items. Put away family photos, go through your closets and storage area’s and tidy them up. Put away the items that you will be taking with you. You’ll be moving soon so start packing now. Keep all surfaces cleared it can make an even a small space look larger.
CLEAN YOUR HOME BEFORE ITS SHOWN
Do sellers really not clean their house before a showing? Yes! You want to present your home at it’s absolute best. Kitchens and bathrooms are where it’s noticed the most. Dust your furniture, clean and vacuum floors. Make your bed. Clean up the bathroom and put away personal items. Find someone to pet sit and ensure that the home is free of pet odors. Nothing kills a sale like that one. Put your dirty laundry away. Sweep your front walk or drive. Ensure what is going to be seen first when a buyer walks in will leave them with a good first impression.
DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGER
Remember that your Realtor is your representative. It is their job to fight for you in the transaction and negotiation process not for all the other parties involved. When presented with an offer lower than expected, receiving any offer is a good thing and even if you choose not to accept it, it can be used it to your advantage. When a buyer or agent asks at the showing “Have there been any offers on this property?” Your Realtor then can answer with Truth “Yes, but none high enough yet to take it !” I know it is a highly emotional process and often times frustrating but your Realtor is not the one writing the offer it is their job to present all offers and help in the negotiating process.
A REMODEL MAY NOT BE A BIG PAY OFF
You have put a lot of hard-earned money, time and effort in to remodeling or upgrading your home. When the market is hot Realtors are more likely to give home renovations more value hoping the market stays hot and the buyer will pay the price. In a cool market Realtors put less value on high dollar projects because they are concerned whether the house will sell in any state remodeled or not. A homes upgrades may not increase the over-all value. Remodel for your market place and don’t “over build” for your area and neighborhood. It’s not always a good thing to be the most expensive home on the block. Take a look at your neighboring homes. What may be important in one area of town or in another state/province may not be important to the type of people who will buy in your neighborhood. Typically renovations don’t get paid back in full.
