Nothing is more disheartening than not getting the activity that you had hoped reflected in showings or offers when selling a home. If this has happened to you, consider these variables that I believe are key to a successful home sale.
Important Factors to Note When Selling Your Home
- Location, location, location. The old adage about the three most important things when buying a home is accurate. At the same time, the location must be factored into the pricing at the time of sale. This is where Zillow does not do home sellers a service. With their radius approach to pricing, their analysis often groups homes that are not truly comparable. For example, the radius could include a house on a busy street and directly compare that home to yours tucked in a quiet cul-de-sac.
- Timing. Your timing has influence on your home sale. The perception is that the best time to sell is springtime, but this is not always the case. Buyers don’t wait to start shopping. By listing the home in January or February, smart sellers get in front of the buyers before their competition hits the market.
- Finance-ability. The finance-ability of your home can either increase or decrease the pool of potential buyers. Consider the requirements for FHA and Federal Veterans financing and be sure to meet the standards of maintenance required.
- Marketing and exposure. These factors are critical. As the seller, you must feel confident that everyone who should know about the property does know about it. As your Realtor, it is my responsibility to present and execute a marketing plan that accurately portrays what your home offers.
- Home condition. The condition of the home will be compared directly to the other similar homes for sale. To be competitive, preparation is necessary. These days, sellers get fewer showings because buyers screen homes aggressively online before viewing. Each showing must be optimized by having the home “dialed-in.”
- Price and position. You can resolve any objection by compensating in price and position. The market is changing daily. Everyone has heard the story of a home being on the market for 90 days and then in a single day getting two or more offers. This is not random chance; it occurs when the subject property rises to the top as the most attractive opportunity at that price point.
Expertise and counsel influence the success of your home sale significantly. Recently, I have seen the fail-to-close rate as high as 25 percent. That is, 25 percent of the sales that went pending sale failed before closing. Choose your Realtor based upon their experience and skill specific to the market (geographic location and price point) of your home. The counsel of a Realtor influences the success of your sale significantly.