Selling a Home in a Down Market

For the past several years the housing market has been fast and furious. With interest rates at their lowest point in decades, many more consumers were able to become homeowners or able to buy more home for their housing dollar. However, many of those loans were adjustable and are now adjusting to a higher rate. Foreclosures are up and so is inventory. In the news we are seeing articles like Too Soon to Look for Housing Market Bottom. So what do you do if you need to sell? How do you get the most money possible without waiting months and months for the home to sell?

Selling in Today's Market

Many a seller has decided to simply wait things out and try selling in a year or so. This works if you have the luxury of waiting, but what if you need to sell now? The key is to be realistic about the market and to differentiate your home from your competition. Homes that look good and are priced right are still selling and aren't necessarily sitting on the market very long either.

Setting a Realistic Price
The first thing you need to do is research. What are homes selling for in your neighborhood? How long before they sell? You can research this online or you can have a real estate agent do this for you. If you ask an agent to do a comparative market analysis (CMA) he or she can provide you not only with a recommended listing price, but can give you numbers and data to back up that number. A real estate agent is far more accurate than websites that claim to provide a CMA because the agent knows the homes in the area and will likely have personal knowledge of some of the recent sales. The condition of the home and whether it was a distress sale can have a major impact on selling price as well. However, websites that provide recent sale information can be useful because they provide raw data. This can help you get a ballpark figure of what you may be able to sell for prior to hiring an agent to do more thorough research. You can also sell your home By Owner, in which case you will have to do all your own research. Just remember, the price you get now has nothing to do with the price you bought it for or what your neighbor sold his for two years ago. You must rely on current data.

Differentiating Yourself from Your Competition
One of the difficulties in our current market is setting your home apart from all the others in the neighborhood. I highly recommend that you do routine maintenance, thoroughly clean up around the house and yard, pull weeds and clear out anything that you won't absolutely need for the next 3 months. It is also a great idea to stage your home so that the first impression is a positive one. If a buyer is looking at 8 or 10 homes similar in price and square footage, the one that appears most move-in ready usually gets the offer.

Another great way to make your home stand out is to do a pre-listing inspection. This shows the buyer that you are not hiding any serious defects. It also provides you an opportunity to correct any problems that do show up. You can provide information on what items you've already corrected to demonstrate the true condition of the home. A buyer sees a pre-inspected home as less of a gamble and that can put you in prime negotiating position.

Be Willing to Negotiate
At the present, even homes in the best condition are getting offers that are several thousand dollars below asking price. Try not to be offended by the offers that you get. This current market is more favorable to buyers and most buyers will at least ask for a lower price to see how well they can do. This is not an insult to your home or your maintenance or housekeeping skills. Remember that the buyer sees the home not just as a place to live, but as a sizable investment. If you are not willing to sell at their offer price, you have the option to reject the offer or to counter the offer at a more reasonable price. In this market, I recommend that you at least counter. Consider it to be continuing a dialogue that the buyer started with their first offer. You may be surprised at how easy it is to come to a meeting of the minds over price if you simply do a little negotiating.

Hire a Good Agent
Since today's market is not flooded with buyers as in times past, it is important to hire a good agent. This agent should understand the issues of the current market and should be available to work closely with you on an ongoing basis until the home is sold. Most buyers are searching initially online rather than in the newspapers, so in most areas you will need an agent that can give you a strong online presence to attract national attention to your home. Your agent should also be willing to give you regular market updates so that if anything changes you can adjust your marketing or pricing strategy to stay ahead of the curve. Hire an agent who will work with you as a teammate rather than one who won't give advice or one who constantly tries to make all your decisions for you.

If you are looking to sell a home in Tucson, I would like to apply for the job of being your agent. For more information on the local Tucson market or to allow me to interview with you, please call me at (520) 481-3695 or email me at Robin.Willis@azmoves.com. You can also visit me on the web at www.TucsonExpertAgent.com. I appreciate the opportunity to serve you.

Best of luck on your sale!