There are several areas that should be addressed prior to the listing of a property for sale, the most important being the urgency of the sale. Urgency does determine price, regardless of what type of property is being dealt with. The more quickly you must sell, the lower you must price the property. If you can afford to wait for the perfect offer, your agent can price accordingly. Obviously some sales are forced forward due to circumstances that need immediate action, for example a change of job or a divorce. If, however, you can choose when to go on the market, every attempt should be made to start the selling process when the demand for homes in your area is high. For South Florida, demand is high during the winter, and low during the summer. In retrospect, in Virginia, it is the exact opposite. Additionally, an effort should be made to:
- Evaluate your financial situation and budget
- Tally transaction costs and remaining equity
- Collect title, survey, mortgage, insurance and other key documents
Sufficient time should also be taken to assess the condition of the property. Tour the home for cosmetic or functional problems, and make every attempt to correct them. Some examples include grimy walls, torn carpeting, torn window screens, crooked light fixtures, a remodeled kitchen with a four decade old refrigerator, mis-matched appliances, and other problems that are within the reach of being fixed rather inexpensively. The aim is to remove as many reasons for potential clients to reject the property as you can. Additionally, it will appeal much more to cash-strapped buyers as they will not have to worry about surprise expenses. Now of course, there will always be problems that you will not be able to fix. Noisy neighbors is one example. Any serious problems with the property that are unfixable must be disclosed to the buyers appropriately, as per state laws. You can generally provide ease of mind to a potential client by purchasing a fairly inexpensive home warranty which covers the cost of repair or replacement to mostly all major house systems.
Next on the agenda should be the most dreadful task of them all, choosing a capable and effective real estate agent. While we would like to claim that it is us, it is a decision to be made entirely and exclusively by your own judgement. One pitfall a lot of consumers get themselves into is choosing the agent that promises the highest sales price, and quite honestly, that promise is, more likely than not, meaningless. The price is mostly dictated by the market, the demand, and the competition. Of course an agent can have a big influence on the sales price by effectively marketing the property to as many potential clients as possible, rather than letting it sit undiscovered for a substantial period of time. Most attention should be paid to how and where your agent will be exposing the property, not how big of a promise they make. In essence, the market always determines the price for which a property sells. If it is underexposed, the sales price will be dictated by that underexposed market. If a property is marketed in an efficient manner and is exposed to as many potentially interested clients as possible, the price for which it sells will be dictated by the much more abundant market. As Napoleon Bonaparte once said, “the best way to keep one’s word is not to give it.” Do not entrust yourself to promises, demand the facts.
The most important preparatory points should have been covered, if you would like additional pointers, or if you prefer to have one of our trained agents take a look at the property in question in order to give you more specific advice, do not hesitate to contact us. Otherwise, buckle up, grab a hot chocolate or coffee, and onto the next section we go.
