It is no secret that this is one of the worst times in history to be a home seller. Just ask anyone who has had their house on the market over the last few months. The bad news is that it doesn’t look like it’s getting any better soon and it may get worse, according to economic pundits. So, is there any good news for home sellers? As dire as the housing market looks, home sellers have options that can result in a home sale with money in their pockets.
No, there are no magic waves of the wand that will make your house sell for top dollar in a short time. Nor are there any secrets that a seller can discover that will make his or her house sell before all the others in the neighborhood for the price that they want. But there are some things that asell cabo homes seller can do if selling is a must.
The one strategy that always works and tends to sting a bit and most home sellers recoil at the mention of it, but it is a fact of life and every single real estate professional will back me up on this – the only reason a home does not sell is because it is overpriced. Period. Granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, and that cool media room that you built won’t matter beans if your home is selling for more than others in the area. If you want to sell your home, price it below your competition.
Location, location, location has been supplanted by price, price, price. With so many fine communities and school systems in just about every locale, home buyers are looking for maximum return on their purchase more than location and they are negotiating hard. Fueled by the news media’s take on the status of the nation’s housing market, espousing the dire straits of sellers and the bargains that can be had, buyers are making low offers and demanding seller concessions. And, oftentimes, they are getting what they want, leaving some sellers bitter and poorer.
Although, in the past, seller incentives were used and worked fairly well to effect a sale in this tough market, their effectiveness has waned because just about every seller is doing that and buyers are too educated to let incentives command a higher price. The best thing to do is just reduce the price of your home and forget the incentives. Buyers want to see real dollar savings. They are comparing your home to dozens and sometimes hundreds of other homes that they are qualified to buy. Your lower price will get the sale, not the flat panel HD TV that you’re willing to throw in.
When there are few buyers in the market, as we are experiencing now, home sellers need to concentrate on three key factors in order to stand out from the crowd. The first is the price, as has been harped upon above, but it cannot be emphasized more. If your home is not priced lower than comparable properties around you, then your home will linger on the market along with those comparables.