Ralph Janisch

As we approach the 4th of July Holiday here in Northwest Houston it seems that maybe, just maybe the powers that be have exercised good judgement. It's so hot and dry here that we are basically sitting on a powder keg. The powers have Banned aerial fireworks like bottle rockets and rockets with fins that cause aerial bursts at low level because of the fire danger. The sane among us are saying a HUGE THANK YOU!!!!! If we were having normal rainfalls there would be no problem but we're not so the banning of this type of firework is certainly welcome. I do symphatize with the vendors because I'm fully aware that this impacts their income but hopefully they will be able to make it up during the next season that allows fireworks. God Bless the USA and may He help us get through this mess! I hope everyone has a restful and safe holiday. And if you want to buy a home in Northwest Houston, Tomball, Magnolia, Cypress, Spring or The Woodlands give me a call.

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We have posted an article on pricing, one on proper presentation, and now we will share some information about marketing.

Marketing, is the promotion of the product, your home. It involves advertising, but ads are a very small part of the process. In selling your own home the best place to start is having a nice looking professionally made yard sign. Remember that you have just gone to great lengths to make the outside of your property look inviting. It does not make sense to mess up the yards appearance with a cheap looking sign. The sign should have a contact phone number on it. Since you want people to be able to reach you, it is probably best to provide your cell phone as the number. It is also a good idea to say “Agents welcome” on the sign. You would not want to lose a qualified prospect because they are already working with a real estate agent. Qualified prospects are not easy to come by, and most agents will work with you to arrive at a mutually agreeable fee for their services.

Next you need to put together a description of the best features of your home with a flattering photo. Give enough information to get the interest of the people, but do not tell them too much. These flyers that you are creating can be placed inside a weatherproof box that attaches to the sign in the yard. Potential buyers can then pick them up and learn more about the house. In putting together your flyer, sit down and think about the reasons you like your house. What made you think it would be a good place to live? What are some of the special features that you have enjoyed? Does your house have extras to make folks more comfortable? Have you replaced any appliances recently? Have you replaced the roof? Write all these things down. Measure the rooms and include the approximate sizes. We stress the word approximate. You do not want to be too specific, because believe it or not there have been cases where people have purchased a home, moved in, measured it and found that the room sizes were wrong. We live in a world where people have been known to sue over discrepancies. Even when the rooms ended up being larger than represented, people have actually lost such law suits. Just remember the word “approximate” and use it whenever you are representing anything!

Once you put your home on the market, spend some time thinking about what sort of person is going to want your home. Where does that person work? How can you reach them to let them know about the availability of your home? This exercise is one of the things that will help you decide where to spend your advertising dollars.

When you design your ad, use your location. Let people know where you are. Rosehill? Tomball? Cypress? Magnolia? The1960 area? Spring? Think again about what people want, and where your home is. What special features does the area offer? Peace and tranquility plus towering trees appeal to some, and urban concrete and modern will little upkeep appeal to others. Where does your home fall in these regards? Design a line that will grab peoples’ attention. Things like “New garbage disposal” will not impact desire to call, but tree shaded, privacy fenced yards very well may appeal to the masses. Ads do not sell homes. Statistically only about one caller in eleven will actually come to see the property they called on. A sign in the yard, an ad in the paper and a prayer that the property will sell has been a frequently used marketing method to sell properties in days past. Today there are far more compelling methods to conquering the sale. There is incredible competition for every product out there. Based upon the advances made in the technology in the past ten years, it appears that more marketing choices will be available in the market of tomorrow. For today, be sure to utilize things like the internet, Facebook and email.

Be sure that you have given the information about your property to all your neighbors. Chances are that they may have a friend or relative who would love to live in the neighborhood. Every one around you will want to know about your home anyway. What you ultimately sell for has a direct impact upon the value of their house too. Getting the word out about the availability of your property is important. As you can see there are a myriad of creative ways to do it, spending as little money as you can. Saving money was the reason for selling the property yourself in the first place, wasn’t it?

As soon as calls are coming in, you will need a way to see which callers are actually able to buy your home, and who you should show your home to. The process for this is called “qualifying the prospect.” The next blog will go into that in detail.

We have talked in a previous article about the most important part of selling any property. That is the price.

The second most important thing is getting the property in show shape. This requires that you take a very objective look at your home. Better yet, invite a trusted friend over, arm yourself with pad and pencil and begin to look from the street. Are any limbs in the way of your view? Do you see pleasant, clean lines, glistening windows, and brightly colored plants peeking out of well kept flower beds? If this was the first time you had seen this house, would you want to go inside? Write down anything you see that is less than picture perfect, and make plans to fix it.

Repainting trim, and using a power washer, especially on porches and around front doors, will help to make a good first impression on potential buyers. Flaking paint anywhere should be addressed and freshened. Neutral colors are a safe bet as a general rule. The plan should be to make the front of the house look well cared for and friendly.

Once you get inside your front door, look again for anything that looks faded, discolored, smudged or extra. Clutter tends to diminish the size of your rooms. Since you are planning to move anyway, this is a great time to begin to pack. Anything you consider personal, or precious should be put into a box, labeled for future reference, and put out of sight.

Look all around. Look in corners, up and down. Banish the dust bunnies, polish the paneling, clean the chandeliers, and discard the extras in your décor. The objective as you go from room to room, is to look at the space through the eyes of a prospective buyer. They are coming to look at the house, not your furnishings. You want people to be able to visualize their things in your rooms.

Now get really critical and look carefully at your flooring and wallpapers. Do they reflect the tastes of today, or are they remnants of the past? Remember that you only get one chance to make a good first impression. A little money invested in new floor coverings may make a lot of difference in the amount of time your home is on the market. It will also influence the kind of offers you get. At the very least, be sure that everything is clean and stain free.

Kitchens and bathrooms are areas that frequently help sell houses. Be sure that your countertops are clear and all the sinks and faucets are gleaming. Curtains should be open if possible to show off the view and to create light. Everyone prefers to have things light and bright. Arrange the things in the pantries and closets to appear orderly and to show off the space. Color co-ordinate the towels and accessories to show off the tile or wallpapers.

Extra time spent on this will pay off in greater results. Just as you would take your car to get it detailed before you took it to the dealer to trade it in, getting your house in show shape is an important part of positioning it on the market. We will discuss that phase in another upcoming blog. If you have specific questions in the mean time please feel free to call us.

If you have an American Flag it needs to be on display at your home and/or business. Be proud to be an American. As you drive around our neighborhood Prestonwood Forest up here in Northwest Houston you see many American flags and you know that WE are proud to be in America. Home of the free and Land of the Brave.

In the mad rush everyday that we call LIFE we sometimes forget to call up dad and spend some time with him. Even if you can't get by to see him you really need to give him a call and just let him know that you love him. If there have been times when you didn't see eye to eye with him and you feel there's a little bad blood between you it's time for you to be the adult here. You both need to forgive and forget.... neither of you are getting any younger. You can't go back and do over when he's gone. Whether you realize it or not you will be a blessing to each other. Slow down! Take a deep breath and don't forget to smell the roses! And if you live here in Northwest Houston there are lots of places you can take dad for a nice dinner. After all, if not for dad you wouldn't be.