• How do I sell my house in a slow market?
• What kind of houses do you buy?
• Why should I hire a real estate agent and pay 6%?
• In what type of real estate do you specialize?
  

Best advice I can offer you is don't sell unless you have to. Okay, if you must sell into a slow market, here are some tips for a successful sale:

1. Price your home to today's market. Most sellers tend to set the price too high, thinking their home is worth more than it really is. Chances are, your home was worth much more yesterday or last year than it is today. Check the sales prices of comparable homes that recently sold and the asking prices of comparable homes that are currently for sale in your neighborhood. Don't look at 'asking' (or list) prices of homes on the market.
2. Obtain an appraisal in advance, so you know what your house is worth (based on the appraiser's professional opinion).
3. Use a seasoned Realtor. According to the National Association of Realtors®, a home sells on average for 16-percent more when the seller uses a Realtor.
4. Have your home professionally inspected before showing it. Get everything repaired so potential buyers won't have an excuse not to buy.
5. Don't move out before it sells, or if you have to move out, try to leave your home 'staged' to make your home look lived in. Buyers are challenged to envision their belongings in an empty house.
6. Offer to pay closing costs for the purchaser, up to 6 percent. A slow market is usually that way due to a slow economy. Buyers are strapped for cash and may need you to help in some way with the financing.
7. Give your Realtor copies of all improvements to the home and any guarantees for anything like a new roof, furnace or hot water tank.
8. Realtor commissions are negotiable. Consider offering a higher commission to your Realtor as an added incentive.
9. Keep your home in ready-to-show condition at all times. This is challenging, especially if you have children. It's important, however. Do not require a 24-hour notice.
10. Focus on curb appeal and making a good first impression. You do not get a second chance to make a good first impression.
11. Be open to negotiating on things like leaving furniture or appliances behind.

Although you may be tempted to take the first offer that comes along, be careful. Not all offers are created equal. Here are some warning signs to watch out for:

1. Someone tells you to take your house off the market for a period of time, and in exchange, the person will pay you more than the asking price later. This is usually a sign that the person plans on using your home as part of a mortgage fraud scheme in which he obtains a loan for more than the house is worth, pays you a little more than what you were asking, and pockets the excess proceeds.
2. A cash back at closing deal in which the person offers you more than the home is worth if you agree to kick back the extra money at closing.
3. The buyer is not pre-approved for a mortgage loan. This person can tie up your home, preventing you from considering better offers.
4. The person is offering no or very little Earnest Money Deposit. The lower the deposit, the more likely the deal will fall through.
5. The prospective buyers make the purchase agreement contingent upon their home selling, and for that to happen, several other transactions must occur first. This is known as the domino effect, and you should avoid it, if possible.

You can successfully sell a home in a declining market, and even profit from the sale, if you set realistic goals and work a little harder at it than your competitors. Just remember to work hard, stick to it, and avoid some of the common pitfalls described in this article.

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We do not 'buy' houses. We are Realtors. We understand your confusion. We specialize in lease-option buying and selling strategies involving starter homes to estate homes.

We are not the "I Buy Houses" folks, however.

As Realtors, we offer many NON-traditional strategies to help sellers sell faster and for the best price..

Contact Us Now About Selling Your House!

Great question. Thanks for asking. Honestly, before I became a Realtor, I actually thought the same thing.

In my case, I didn't fully understand what goes into buying or selling a house and what a real estate agent really does.

I actually had the audacity to believe Realtors simply wore their suits, drived their Beemers, wore their Rolexes, carried their cute little PDAs and collected big fat commission checks for doing nothing.

Certainly, this applies to some real estate agents, who don't know a contingency from a kitchen cabinet.

They're bored at home, know lots of people and think, 'What the heck; I'll become a Realtor!' They know nothing about real estate, but they look great...drive great cars...carry their black leather 'business' attache bags. The whole nine yards.

Aside from the 'pretty faces' in real estate pretending to 'earn' their commissions, to sell a house requires you to do more than stick a sign in the front yard and toss an ad in your local newspaper.

In the 'old' days, that worked fine. Not so today. Do you know the 4 essential steps to selling?

Do you know how to price your house to sell?

Do you know about 'interest-rate buydowns', 'lease options', 'seller carrybacks'? Do you know how to determine which is right for you and a potential buyer?

Do you know how to sell your own home objectively? Many FSBO sellers get emotional about their homes and fail to the process objectively. That's understandable, perhaps, but that approach will not sell houses.

Do you know how to market your home to local, state, national & international buyers?

Do you know what paperwork must be completed and how to compete it?

Do you know that most properties sold For Sale By Owner typically net LESS than the 6% paid a real estate broker? That doesn't even include your time. If you choose to sell your own house, do not put an hourly rate value on your time.

Should you choose to sell your own house -- I believe everyone should try it once -- please find yourself a 'good' real estate attorney to guide you.

Best of luck. I hope this helps.

Contact Us Now About Selling Your House!

We specialize in NON-traditional real estate with buyers and sellers. When buyers cannot get a mortgage right now or choose not to get a mortgage right now, that's our area of expertise.

That's the real estate we enjoy...the challenges.

Of course, we represent buyers and sellers in traditional transactions. However, that's not our specialty or preference.

As with a cardiologist, he/she is still a doctor. Yet, he/she has chosen to to treat problems of the cardiovascular system - the heart, arteries, and veins of the body.

Contact Us Now About Selling Your House!