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4 Ways to Attract Buyers to Your Listing

January 17, 2012 By Talia Leave a Comment

4 Ways to Attract Buyers to Your Listing

Some buyers are looking for a home that’s located in a specific neighborhood. Others have more flexibility regarding where they live. But most buyers share one thing in common: They want a home that’s in move-in condition and at a great price.

Start working on attracting buyers to your home by putting the property in good condition before it goes on the market. In most cases, it’s not a good idea to show your home to a prospective buyer before it’s ready to be shown. Photos should also wait until your home presents itself well.  I highly recommend hiring a professional stager.  Many real estate agents will pay for the first hour.

Pay attention to “curb appeal”; first impressions are lasting. Some buyers drive by without taking a look inside if they don’t like the way a house looks from the street. The yard should be clean and tidy. Replace the front lawn if it’s dead; the same goes for plants that have seen better days. Flowering plants make your home look welcoming, inviting, and well maintained.

Peeling paint should be touched up, if possible. If an entire exterior paint job is called for, consider changing the color scheme to enhance the appeal. One seller repainted the exterior of his home before selling without consulting his agent or a colorist. He repainted using the existing color scheme, which was out of date. The house didn’t sell quickly. When it did, the first thing the buyers wanted to do was change the color of the exterior.

Repair deferred maintenance, particularly if it’s visible from the street. You want to convey the impression that your home has been well maintained. If you can’t afford to repair and paint the white picket fence in front of your house, it would be better to remove it than leave it.

Houses that don’t have much architectural appeal can often be improved by the addition of shutters. Houses that don’t show much from the street can be enhanced with an architecturally intriguing gate or entryway. You want to peak buyers’ interest in seeing what they can’t see from the street.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: List with an agent who can provide wide exposure for your home, including extensive Internet advertising. The vast majority of homebuyers search for homes online. Buyers discount Internet listings that do not have photos, and they gravitate toward those with many photos and quality photos. Make sure that the agent you list with will not put your home on the multiple listing service or Internet without plenty of quality, representative photos — 15 or more is good.

The importance of Internet advertising should not be underestimated. The Internet is global and available 24/7. Buyers often find the listing they want to buy on the Internet before their agent has seen it. After surfing the Internet, some buyers decide to buy outside the area they were focusing on if they see something elsewhere that appeals to them.

Local marketing may work in some cases, but you wouldn’t want to cut yourself short. Broad exposure of your listing to the market is an integral part of selling.

Although the buyer for your home could come from anywhere, you do want it to be exposed to the local agents. Your agent should hold the listing open for real estate agents as soon as it’s ready to be shown. Repeat broker open houses may be necessary to make sure a representative number of agents see the listing.

Public open houses are good exposure. Some buyers still find the home they buy at an open house. However, they don’t pay off like they did during the bubble market. Encourage private showings, which require that you make it easy for agents to show your home to their buyers.  If your agent’s office has a property tour, it is a good idea to allow your house to be on the tour.  This will give you a head start in being exposed to many agents that have buyers that might be interested in purchasing your house.

THE CLOSING: The best way to attract buyers to your listing is to price it right for the market. Otherwise, all of your efforts will be for naught.

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: 4 ways to attract buyers to your listing, broker open houses, entire exterior paint, extensive internet advertising, house hunting tip, multiple listing service, open house, public open houses, real estate agents, white picket fence

Staging Tips for Home Sellers

January 13, 2011 By Talia Leave a Comment

If you are about to list your house on the market or feel that your house has been sitting too long, here are some great house staging tips to improve that important first impression:

  • Maximize the “first impression” opportunity. Carefully critique the front door. Apply fresh paint and new hardware if necessary. Sweep, tidy, and power wash the walkway and entry as needed. Buy a new welcome mat.
  • Tidy the closets and leave all at least 1/3 empty.
  • Depersonalize for the buyer to imagine his belongings in the space. Eliminate family photos, personal collections and controversial art.
  • Add fresh flowers and live plants in entry, kitchen, dining room and bathrooms for showings.
  • Replace light bulbs where needed. Consider maximum allowable wattage to increase brightness of rooms.
  • Check all faucets/plumbing for leaks or drips and repair as needed.
  • Invest in a weekly cleaning service during the marketing period. Kitchens and bathrooms should “sparkle”.
  • Clean the oven, dishwasher, and refrigerator.
  • Avoid the use of potpourri and other strong pet or cooking odors. Fresh apples tend to absorb odor.
  • Consider professional window cleaning inside and out.
  • Leave window treatments open to maximize light for showings.
  • Clean carpeting and area rugs.
  • Keep toilet seats down for showings. Remove toilet plungers, bowl brushes and trash from view.
  • Clear kitchen counters and remove all items on refrigerator.
  • Remove all clutter and paperback books. Keep medications out of sight.
  • Consider removing pets and all pet dishes and toys for showing.
  • Assist your Realtor by being absent for all showings.

These great tips courtesy of Austin interior designer Jan Griffin.

Filed Under: How To, Selling Tips Tagged With: decorating, home, house, interior design, makeover, staging, tips

What To Do When Your Home Isn’t Selling

August 24, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

When you sell your home, the process is almost like going to a job interview. Selling a home involves presentation, which is one of the key factors that determine the outcome. Although this may sound a bit weird, presentation is a way of life in the world of real estate. Buyers in today�s market look for good presentation � many basing their final decisions on it.

If the property you are selling comes with a garage, you�ll need to go through your garage before you sell your home. Chances are that you store things in your garage, which can easily pile up over time before you realize it. If your garage is in a messy condition, you�ll obviously want to clean it up. Buyers look for homes that are in perfect condition, and anything less than perfect will look bad in the eyes of the buyer.

Most homes have some truly outstanding features inside of them. You should always do your best to highlight the best features of your home, instead of just hoping that the buyer understands what they are. The ideal way to bring out the best features of your home is to use the proper lighting. If your home is clean, you can use lighting to bring out the best features in your home, and ensure that they stand out to the buyer.

When a potential buyer first pulls up to your home; the first thing he will see is your lawn. If your lawn is trimmed and well taken care of, he will get a good impression right off the bat. If your lawn is a wreck, he may immediately pull away. To give the best impression to the buyer, you should put some thought into how things look. You can always plant flowers around the walkway and throughout the yard, which will look great to a potential buyer.

You should also make sure that the entrance into your home is a positive as well. The front door should be in great shape, as well as the entry area into the home. You can add some plants, paintings, and rugs to ensure that your buyer gets a good impression. When the buyer walks through the entry way into your home, you should make sure that the view he or she takes in is a good on. Your biggest goal when showing your home is to ensure that the buyer is pleased.

Keep in mind that it may take some time to sell your home. These days, homes can sit on the market for months at a time before they actually sell. If you are having trouble selling your home, you can always reduce the price or simply go back to the basics. Eventually you will sell your home � although it may take more time than you think.

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Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: sell your home, selling your home

Types of Listing Contracts

August 19, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

A listing contract is an agreement between you and a licensed real estate broker that authorizes the broker to represent you in the process of selling your home. There are several different types of listing contracts, but very few of them are used. The most common one used is the “Exclusive Right to Sell”. But will find that there are a lot more types, allowing you to choose the level of authorization to give to your agent. Here are some of them:
Open Listing
Considered the one most generally used, this type of contract is for people who are want to both sell their home and work with real estate agents. What the contract does is giving the right for agents to do showings of your home, and gives them an amount of commission if the client chose to buy your house. The good thing about open listing is that there are nothing exclusive or painfully bonding about them. The bad thing is that you can expect less marketing or advertising done.
One-Time Show
This type of listing contract is pretty much the same to open listing. It�s generally used by people trying to sell their own home and involving an agent for the home showings. The listing contract identifies the potential buyer and guarantees the agent a commission if that buyer buys the home. Just like open listings, this type lacks of marketing efforts.
Exclusive Agency Listing
During your home selling, you will find that different types of listing contracts involve a lot of different people. This one involves a broker. Basically an exclusive agency listing will give you the right to sell your own home, without paying the broker any commission unless the house is sold through a licensed real estate professional. Should the house be sold without any help of agents, the contract allows homeowners to pay no commission at all. The reason why this type of listing contract is widely used is the temptation of not having to pay your broker.
Exclusive Right to Sell Listing
The most popular type of listing with sellers and brokers, this contract gives the full right for your broker to do whatever it takes to sell your house. For obvious reasons, this is probably the type of contract where you can expect the most incentive from the agent � a good marketing effort can take place here, and the homeowners� work is much reduced.
Before you choose your contract, always make sure you know every type of listing contracts available to you. Take in mind how much effort you would like to contribute to the home selling � this is often what distinguishes the types. Discuss the possibilities and disadvantages of each type. Remember, a listing contract is your first legal step in selling your house � take that step carefully.

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: home selling, real estate agent, real estate agents, sell your house, selling your home

Tips For Selling Your Home

August 16, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

Unlike other things that you may own, you can never take selling your home lightly. A house is a big commodity, one that is worth a lot of money. Before you even think about selling your home, you should put a lot of thought and consideration into it. Although you may want to sell your home – you should make sure that you do it the right way.

The first thing you should do when you are thinking of selling your home is to hire yourself a qualified real estate agent who knows the neighborhood. An agent who knows your neighborhood will known the ideal price for your home, and help you sell it at the ideal price. If your home is priced right for the neighborhood, chances are it will sell. If it is priced too high, you might not get any offers or anyone interested in buying the home.

Once you have a real estate agent, you and your agent will need to develop a strategy. You�ll need to decide on the price and how long you will leave it on the market before you think about a reduction. You�ll also need to discuss his commission as well, which will help to avoid any misunderstandings in the future. If you talk about these types of things when you first start out selling your home, you�ll find the entire process to go much smoother.

In some cases, you may run out of time before you are able to sell your home. In this situation, you may want to rent out your home. When you rent out your home, you may also be able to strike a deal with renters that your home is available for showing. To make the house accessible to potential buyers, you may want to offer your renters a lower price. This way, they will be more inclined to make the house available for potential buyers.

Keep in mind that selling your home will take you some time. You can also sell it yourself if you prefer, without a real estate agent. This can save you quite a bit of money as well, as you won�t have to pay a real estate agent. If you are planning to go this route, you should make sure that you know the value of your home and you know the neighborhood. You can put a �for sale by owner� sign in the yard, and list your home in local newspapers, and on the Internet as well. This way, you�ll get your home out to the market of potential buyers. Homes that are for sale by the owner are always great for buyers – as they can deal with the owner directly and not have to worry about dealing with any real estate agents.

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Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: potential buyers, real estate agent, real estate agents, sell your home, selling your home

Tip on Selling Your Own Home

August 12, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

Selling your own home is never easy, and the difficulties ran more than just missing an agent. There are those memories and sense of belongings to get over, for one. You want to make sure the house you�ve lived in moves to the best buyer possible � and you want to make sure they�re willing to pay what it�s worth. Do you really think you can do this? A lot of people managed to sell their own home quickly. Here are some tips that might help:

� Make sure you have every legal issues covered before you even think about handing your house over. Does your state law require you to give property disclosures to potential buyers? It�s always a good idea to invest in a good attorney to help you.
� An attorney also come in handy for helping you make the contract form. Selling your own home requires a contract that would both protect you and the buyer � think about the buyer deposit and the local estate laws.
� A useful but normally disregarded tip in selling your own home is make sure you pick out the best picture to put in the advertisements. Like humans, not all houses are �photogenic�, so pick out the best angle that still represents what your house has to offer.
� Something the agents have and you don�t is experience, especially in observing buyers. The large amount of potential buyers coming to your house should not convince you that everyone can finance for a house. If you�re selling a house on your own, more buyers will come in hope of a more flexible negotiation � check them all. Ask if they�re able to buy your house immediately, or do they need to sell their own house first.
� Cleaning and preparing your house for home showings is only a part of your effort. Some potential buyers love to do drive-bys, and rely on that first impression. Make sure your lawn and the front part of your house is well maintained. If your curb appeal is low, clients are reluctant to see what�s inside.
These tips on selling your own home came from people who managed to sell their house successfully. There�s a lot to consider before you take every next step, so take your time. And remember, it�s useless to do the selling on your own if the revenue taken from not hiring an agent is spent heavily on fixing your own mistakes!

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: potential buyers

STEPS TO SELLING YOUR HOME

August 9, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

Selling your private property is something private as well. It requires courage and confidence. Here are some steps that will help you to sell your home:
1. Look at your home condition. This is the first step that will make you easier to get a buyer. Buyer or consumers always need a first impression. The physics of your home, inside or outside, is very important to make them contact you for the price. So, make sure you have a property that is clean, neat, and well-cared. Who want to buy a home with filthy condition? Repair the leakages and re-paint the walls will make your home even nicer and attractive.
2. Price your home. How much do you want to worth your home? Of course it depends on your home physics and external supports. External supports mean the neighborhood and public access. The more accessible and nicer neighborhood will definitely in demand and can be considered plus points for your home. Also in pricing your home, it is important to look at the market. How does the market say? Market can be a good step point to set your home price. As an additional tip, always open for negotiation! People like to bargain.
3. Advertise your home. Advertisement is always effective in getting consumers. Many ways to advertise your home:
a. Advertise your home on the newspaper. It requires extra budget, but it is worth lots of people to read your advertisement.
b. Put an announcement board or banner in front of your home. This will make everybody who crosses the street to know your sale and perhaps tell it to their relatives. The bigger the banner is the better.
c. Print lots of brochures or leaflets and disseminate it in public places. And do not make the information narrative; just a few pointers that has your home picture and contact number on it.
d. Tell your friends and relatives. This could be the easiest way to advertise your home. I personally do not prefer friend/relative-related consumers, but as long as they can give you a good price, why not? And also, friends and relatives are usually kind enough to help us to look for buyers. That�s what friends are for, right?
4. Use a broker service. Broker service will help you to market your home even better since they have lists of potential buyers. They are definitely the expert to help you in negotiating with buyers and basically arranging your home sale (from the first step). You can call them as the middleman. If you do not want to waste your time, you could just contact few brokers and ask for their services. The consequence is you have to share a certain percentage of your home selling price with them. So, if you do need to sell your home very soon, I would recommend this strategy.

Good luck in selling your home!

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: home selling, home selling price, potential buyers, sell your home, selling price, selling your home

Showing Your House to Home Buyers

August 4, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

This is it. The icing to your cake. The moment you�ve been waiting for ever since you decide to sell your home. The price is right, the marketing is going well, and you watch with enthusiasm as the response started coming: the home buyers are coming! It�s now time to take your marketing to the next level: house showings. How are you preparing for it? You�ve inspected, checked and cleaned your house thoroughly. You made sure everything�s in place, or if they�re not, in the most ideal place to be shown. Showings are, after all, the chance to impress the home buyers by flaunting everything your house has.
Now relax. Showing your house to home buyers is especially easy when you�re trying to sell your own house by yourself. This is a good opportunity to get personal � homebuyers would want to see more than just the house they saw in the advertisement picture. As you move throughout the house, pay special attention to objects that created some memories during your stay. Things like �My father does this beautiful carving when he was 18� will add some personal note to your home. And while you�re on the business of using your family, don�t hesitate to let your family members take part. Assign jobs for them in advance for emergencies or short-notice showings.
You want the home buyer�s full attention on your house. But at the same time you want some elements on your house to be insignificant enough to provide a comfortable environment. Make sure the house is well aired and lighted by opening windows (during possible weathers) and positioning all the coverings to show maximum sunlight. A dark house, especially when it�s a big house, will create the effect of gloom and depression; not exactly the kind of house you�d buy.
During those times when you�re forced to keep all your windows shut, make sure the air inside your house is in good, clean condition. Some homeowners will bake cookies to keep that �fresh� air hanging, but if you�re not keen on taking it that far, just be sure to wipe out any pet / bathroom odors or smoke. In house showings, the air should do what it needs to do � allows human to breathe � and do nothing more.

Having a pet around is highly discouraged. No matter how well behaved they are, or how much the homebuyers may love them, it�s not a good idea to bring out your animal. God knows what kind of behaviour they can suddenly break into in front of your guests!

Last of all, if an agent is showing your house to home buyers, try as hard as you can not to be at home. Homebuyers tend to feel like intruders when they�re checking details of a house with its owners watching.

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: sell your home

Selling Your Home Fast

July 31, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

We all know that buying or selling a home can be a time consuming process. Although there are thousands of people looking to buy homes, it can be a tricky process finding the right person interested in your home. With hundreds of thousands of homes for sale in the United States, there is always some form of competition.

If you�re looking to sell your home fast, you�ll need to attract as much attention as possible. A real estate agent can help, although he can only do so much. He can show your home and help to get it out there to buyers, although he can�t make it sell. If you want to sell it fast, you�ll need to do some work yourself. If you put the effort into selling your home fast, chances are that you will.

The quickest way to sell a home is by staging it. Staged homes literally invite the buyer in, making him feel right at home. Staged homes are also appealing both inside and out, and are more or less ready to be moved into immediately. They don�t sit on the market for long at all, yet they bring a top dollar sell. If you are familiar with staged homes – you should know that they are among the fastest selling homes on the market.

If you don�t want to use a real estate agent, it�s still quite possible to sell your home – and sell it fast. You�ll need to do everything yourself, which involves getting your home out there to the market and showing it to potential buyers. You can always list your home in local newspapers, magazines, and put a �for sale by owner� sign in the yard. This way, you are letting buyers know that your home is for sale. Some buyers prefer homes that are for sale by the owner, as they don�t have to pay a real estate agent or deal with one directly.

When you sell your home, you should always make sure that the exterior is clean, the lawn is trim, and the interior is in superb condition. If you plan to live there until it is sold, you�ll want to make sure that you have the interior staged as best as you can. You want to give the buyer a great feeling, so he�ll stay and won�t leave. If your home is visually appealing both inside and out, a buyer will want to see more.

Once a buyer wants to see more of your home, chances are you have found the individual who will buy it. You should never make the buyer feel pressured, but instead make him feel that you are interested in his thoughts and opinions. If you show a buyer that you care – you will go a long way in establishing trust – which will help you sell your home.

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Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: potential buyers, real estate agent, sell your home, selling a home, selling your home

Selling your own home

July 27, 2010 By Talia Leave a Comment

Home sweet home. We always feel comfortable in our own home. Like they say, �there is nothing place comfortable like home�. Yes, that is true. But what if you want to sell your own home? Selling your own home can be difficult at one time, because you cannot see your own home as a property to sell. You are used to the way of your home looks and functions and there be no problems with that. But homebuyers see things differently, they is if the house is still proper to live in, is the house is clean and tidy, is the house has spacious area for the whole family, is it a secure neighborhood, etc.
Selling your own home can be a fun or maybe exhausting activity because you have to prepare your home and fix the flaws or defect of your home. You can choose by yourself whether you want to sell your own home by yourself or you may want to use a real estate agent to sell your home. Every choice has its own advantages and disadvantages. Because it is your home, you can decide it by yourself. One thing you should also remember that every choice that you make should gain more benefits to you.
If you do not want to bother by this �selling home� matter, then you can use a real estate agent to sell your home right away with reasonable price that you or the agent suggest. The real estate agent will take care all of the documents and arrange the meeting between you and the buyer. The agent also prepares the open house if you don not have much time to do it. At the end of the closing time, this agent will cut your home price up to 6% for his service to help you to sell your own home. Even tough you will loose some dollars for the agent, at least your home is sold with the price that you want and you do not have to think about the documents and the permits either. Everything is prepared and finished by this agent.
But what if you want to sell your own home by yourself? It still possible, as a matter of fact, you will save more dollars because you do not have to spend more money on real estate agents. However, selling your own home by yourself need extra works and extra time and extra energies since you will be doing all things from a to z in selling your own home. The fun fact is that you can stress up your home�s best points to the buyers and negotiating the price directly with them without any third party such as the real estate agent. You can find information about selling your own home by yourself on the web or newspaper about the price of houses.
You have to be smart in selling your own home. Do not sell it at low price so that it will cost you more money, or at high price so that the buyer will be scared away and leave.

Filed Under: Selling Tips Tagged With: real estate agent, real estate agents, sell your home
Best Selling Home Plan