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THE BEST CHANCE OF SELLING A HOME TODAY IS IF IT IS PRICED RIGHT!

UNDERSTANDING TODAY’S REAL ESTATE MARKET AND TODAY’S BUYER.

Not all areas of the county have seen price drastic price drops. Some have fared better than others. Most home owners have seen their values decline.
No body knows for sure when the market will stabilize. There is a lot of activity is sales today, but many of the sales today is in the market of $500,000 and below.
The market has been dominated by short sales and Real estate owned property (bank owned.)
Short Sales and REOs have been a wonderful source for first-time buyers and investors. Many of these first time buyers were unable to participate in the market just a few years ago.
Many buyers today that were priced out of a market area a few years ago are finding that they now have the opportunity to buy.
Although there are short sales and REO property in all areas of the county, the concentration is in areas of home prices below $500,000 and just in certain areas. Not all areas are inundated with these types of sales.
Buyers today are aggressive when making offers. They are asking sellers for concessions, they would never have dreamed of doing a few years ago.
Let’s face it. Buyers are in the driver’s seat. But if a home is priced correctly it still has a very good chance of selling at close to that price.
A buyer is very strong if today if they make an offer that is not contingent on the sale of their home and they are preapproved by a lender.

PRICING AND PREPARING YOUR HOME FOR SALE

Is your home the only one in the the state of Califonia that has increased in alue since the height of the market in 2005? There are still some sellers that believe so.

Overpricing you home for sale is the "kiss of death". You may not recover. The listing will become stale and it will soon be forgotten by buyers and brokers. It is ok to price a little higher, but be realistic.
Pricing your home to today is very straight forward. Concentrate only in your neighborhood when comparing properties that have recently sold with yours. It really does matter what the medium price is in the city or the county. It is not relevant when you see articles in the paper that prices have declined 30% or whatever the number is. Determing a asking price for your home is is local. Your neighborhood.
No matter what you hear first impressions do count. And they count a lot.
Fix your home up. Spend some money. It is well worth it. Make those easy to do repairs. Paint if necessary. Replace broken windows and screens. And most of all make sure your yard is in orderr. This is called curb appeal. This matters the most.
Buyers may ask sellers to pay part or all of their closing costs. That does not mean a seller has to accept that request. It's called negotiation.
A buyer may ask a seller to make certain repairs after they have completed their physical inspections. Reasonalbe repair requests should be strongly considered. If it is unreasonable, don't do it.
A seller should not run away from a low ball offer. Some byers like to test the waters. Don't reject that offer out of hand. Make a counter offer that you can live with and see where it goes from there. If the buyer walks away, so what.
If a seller is receiving offers that are much less than the asking price or no offers, then it should give the seller time to pause. The market is "talking" to you. It is letting you know is most likely overpriced and that may based on the condition of the property. Pay attention to this development.
Don't waste your time trying to price your property based on web sites such as zillow or the like. The only way to properly price your property is your neighbor's homes that have recently sold in your neighborhood. Your agent or broker should be able to show you everything that has happened in the last 4 or 5 months. Remember looking at comparable properties; don't look at properties that have sold more than 6 months ago. They are irrelevant.
Some sellers will purposely under price their property. Why? Because there is a very good chance that brokers and buyers will realize the under valuation and the seller will get multiple offers and the sales price is driven up. A good broker or agent can explain how to do this.

A seller today has to put the best foot forward. This is not like the old days. If a home is priced right and it has been prepared for sale, it has a very good chance of selling. If it overpriced, then a seller should prpare for a long wait with no guarantee of sucess.

WHO TO CHOOSE WHEN LISTING YOUR PROPERTY

Many sellers today have become conditioned; a neighbor that has a license or feel they must list with an “expert” for their area.
Listing with a friend may be dangerous to your friendship. Listing with a neighbor may be dangerous to your friendly neighborhood.
What you have to do is choose the right agent or broker. First talk with them on the phone. Many times you can make your decision right there. But sitting down with them in your home is the best.
Don’t be afraid of choosing an agent or broker that does not have an office nearby.
Many agents and brokers today have been developing new business models that allow them to operate county wide and without a bricks and mortar office.
They all have just as much information about your neighborhood and recent sales as does the “expert”.
Because of the new business models, many brokers can offer you reduced commissions and other concessions. If money is not important to you, then maybe you should consider not selling.
If there was ever a time that every dollar counts, it is now.
Once your home is listed, make sure you see the listing as it appears on the multiple listing service. Besides the price, photos are the next important element on the mls. The mls allows for 12 photos. Make sure there are 12 photos. Make sure the photos are of quality. Don’t be afraid to tell you agent to retake photos or change he photos on the mls. Quality photos can make or break your listing.
If you really fear that now is not the best time to sell your home, then don’t.
However if you purchase your home prior to 2005, you most likely have equity. Yes you home value today may have dropped from its high, but so has that property in the neighborhood that you have always wanted to be in. So the replacement home will be at a reduced price.
How much you net is selling your home is the most important part of the selling transaction. Period.
The commission is the largest expense of any real estate sale and by far.
Progressive brokers are changing their business models because of the changing real estate industry.
If you pay 5% or 6% to sell your home, you are paying too much. In the days when values were going through the roof many sellers did not seem to care how much they gave up of their hard earned equity to commissions.
Don’t be fooled into believing that high commissions sell properties, they don’t. The 6% commission is split between the listing agent and the agent the represent the buyer. A buyer is not too concerned about what commission is being paid to their agent. They just want the house. So if an agent tells you that you must offer at least 3% to the buyer’s agent through the mls, it just is not true. Buyer’s agents will be very happy selling the home and receive 2%. Sure they would like 3%, but they are not going to try and change a buyer’s mind just because they want more of a commission.
This is a new era for the real estate industry. The internet has and is continuing to change the way real estate is purchased and sold. The changes being made today benefit both buyer and seller. And that is the way it should be. Take advantage of all the changes. You can and will benefit.

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