Optimizing your opportunity as a seller in a robust sellers’ market requires careful alignment of seven critical elements: Location of the home, timing of the listing, terms available for financing, condition of the home, marketing and exposure of the home, pricing and positioning among other homes for sale, and the expertise of the real estate sales team.
Smart real estate requires acknowledgement of all assets and liabilities surrounding each of these elements, to maximize the opportunities and minimize the downsides of each on your home’s sale. This may require you to offset one negative influence with strategic use of another, but first, you must understand which elements are within your control.
What home sellers can’t change
A seller cannot affect the following elements: the location of your home upon resale, the timing of the sale (depending upon the reason for your sale), and finally, the terms available for financing the sale, unless you can offer owner financing of your home. Although you cannot change the reality of these factors, there is no denying that they will impact your home’s resale. Fortunately, you can offset these challenges.
Maneuvering for a successful sale
For example, your home may sit on a major arterial road in Eugene, while an identical home is selling in a quiet residential neighborhood nearby. Creating sound and visual barriers from the busy street could minimize the negative impact of the street and attract buyers who want a quieter neighborhood. In addition, you should price your home lower to give the buyer incentive to consider it despite the busy road. By utilizing the influences of condition and pricing, sellers can offset the concerns of location.
Taking control of your home sale
Now, let’s focus on the elements of success in home-selling that sellers can influence.
1. The condition of your home at the time of sale
The condition of the home at the time of listing has received renewed focus since the birth of HGTV.
‘If I replace the carpeting in the home prior to listing it for sale, and it costs me $4,500, I will increase the sales price of my home by $10,000.’
‘If I rent a power-washer to remove all the moss from the driveway, buyers who drive by will be confident in the maintenance of the home and want to take a closer look.’
Despite the fixer-upper trend, by great majority, buyers are seeking a home that is ‘turnkey-ready’ and they will pay more for less house if a home is in stellar condition. By preparing your home to appeal to these buyers you can increase significantly the demand for your home.
2. Marketing and exposure in the real estate market
Another critical element to maximizing the demand for your home (and thereby maximizing the return on your investment) is marketing and exposure. Every buyer should be able to find your home in the marketplace, and easily and quickly understand the opportunities that it offers. Your Realtor of choice will lead and manage the marketing effort.
3. Positioning your home for online appeal
It is especially critical today to find a Realtor who knows how to engage the Internet’s power in their marketing strategies. No longer is curb-appeal the key that opens the door; now it is online appeal that will inspire buyer interest. For this reason, pre-staging photos for your listing is critical. Realtors are not professional photographers, and the selection and chronology of photos as they appear online is significant in the success of a home sale. So, be sure your Realtor has a professional photographer on the marketing team.
4. Listing your home at the right price
Finally, the price of a home the day it hits the market greatly influences the outcome of the sale. When they list their home, sellers must consider the other opportunities available to buyers. Over-pricing a home and then slowing discounting the price down to the market value will slip the home under the radar of the strongest and most viable buyer. The price must be adjusted to influence positively the other six key elements of a home sale.
Hire the right Realtor for home sale success
To maximize successfully the sale of your home in Lane County, hire a great Realtor, and talk to more than one Realtor before listing your home. This way you can hear how each would approach the seven areas of influence and best maximize your opportunity to sell.
Contact Marcia Edwards
Do you want to learn how to sell smart? Marcia Edwards, MBA is a Principal Broker at Windermere Real Estate of Lane County. She offers expertise to homebuyers and sellers in the Eugene area. To learn all the steps to selling smart, contact Marcia today.