Jake Forbes

For sale by owners usually prove why real estate professionals are needed. Yesterday I met with a for sale by owner in Hertford, NC, he is one of four brothers who inherited their mother's home after she passed away in June 2008. They have been trying to sell the house for $120,000, but the home is appraised at only $110,000. I explained that the most they could possibly sell the home for is $110,000 as a bank will not lend more than a home is worth. I then went on to explain the difference between an appraisal and market value and that the home's market value was between $80,000-$90,000. Fortunately for me I was talking with the brother who says he's been telling his siblings that the home was overpriced. He's ready to put the home on the market for a reasonable listing price and sell the property, but he has to deal with three unrealistic brothers who live out of state while he has to maintain the property.

Most for sale by owners do not think of how much it costs to maintain and own real estate. For example how much money have these four brothers spent to maintain real estate Hertford, NC? The best advice I can think of to families who inherit homes is to price the property correctly and list it with a Realtor or sell the property at auction. Divide the proceeds from the sale and maintain a healthy relationship with your family.

We just conducted a successful estate auction this past Saturday. We sold a 3 bedroom 3 bath home, an additional lot, and personal property in Plymouth, NC. The seller approached us a couple of months ago and wanted to sell his mother's personal property and list the house for sell. However after talking with him and learning of his desire to price the property correctly and move the real estate as soon as possible I mentioned he should consider an auction. He promptly informed me he didn't want to give it away, but after explaining the auction method of marketing he quickly agreed to give the auction a try.

On Saturday we where successful selling both the house and lot at auction. To give you a some background on why this was such a success the house is located in Plymouth, NC, which typically takes a home a nine months to a year to sell even in a good market. Plymouth's largest employer Domtar paper mill, just laid off 20% of their workforce. The house was in great condition, but very dated. However we where had a successful auction and sold the house at market value within two months saving our seller money, time, and the emotional heartache of trying to maintain his parents home from afar.

If you are trying to sell a property in a difficult market consider giving a professional auctioneer a call.