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1. Make sure that the comps you are comparing your house with are current sales, not current listing prices.
2. Your real estate market is different from markets in other cities, even different from other neighborhoods around you.
3. It is very difficult to sell in this market, but your real estate agent has CONSIDERABLY MORE RESOURCES available than you do. Take a proactive approach with your agent. You chose your agent for a reason; don't discount those reasons now. Talk with your agent about your concerns and find out what kind of creative ideas your agent has.
4. Consider your asking price. If you are higher than similar properties around you, you will probably have a very difficult time selling your house.
5. Shop around. Look at other houses in your neighborhood in the same price range. Be very objective when you ask yourself how your house compares with them.
6. ALWAYS, ALWAYS make sure your front yard is neat and tidy, your home is neat and tidy, and it is easy for agents to show.
I hope this helps!
Good luck to you!
Wendy Piquette
Pittsburgh, PA insurance agent.
I can relate to your sense of urgency. We are being relocated as well. Unfortunately, we have a high end home in an area of modest means. The good news (if there can be any) is that the house directly across from us is for sale and $100,000 higher than ours, also, another home 3 houses up went on the market last week and is listed almost $300,000 more than ours. We have nicer amenities and as much square footage. So even though we are a bargain in the neighborhood, the market here is dead. We are purchasing another home and will move over the summer, whether this one sells or not. I wish you and everyone else the best of luck!
To add more doom to the mix, my area in Las Vegas has more foreclosures then any place in the USA. The mortgage companies are giving an estimate of value based on what the simular homes are sold at auction for. They are no longer using CMAs or Appraisals by CAGof A.
The situation is hopeless here.
I am hearing of some attempted buying activity but the homes are not appraising due to the lenders putting such a low estimate of value.....even if the neighboring homes have sold they are not using them as comps.
Sometimes there just isn't an easy answer. Sit down with your agent and go over what similar homes in your area have gone for the last six months and how long they've been on the market. You might be surprised, unkindly so, by what you find. You'll have a better idea of what your odds are.
You say your husband has been relocated. No relo help from the company?
1. make sure the home is very clean, inside and out. Curb appeal makes a difference!
2. make sure the home has no odors. Make cookies or get a timed air freshener for showings.
3. is the home cluttered? Walls covered with family photos? fridge covered w/magnets?
4. is the home dark, and uninviting? Open drapes/blinds & let sun in.
5. Is there some feature about the home that is a sure selling feature that you can accentuate? such as hardwood floors?
6. are there homes for sale around you with better "wow" factors? they may get showings before you.
When a house stays on the market that long, buyers figure something is wrong with it
I'm just asking here... is that still true? Are you buyers still thinking that, even knowing the situation with the markets of excess inventory? Why? If you listen to the sellers here, they are all having difficulty selling....nothing is wrong with their home, nothing wrong with them. Isn't that kind of 'yesterday' thinking?
Several years ago, you could sell a parking space sized lot for the right price and someone would buy it for "potential". This is not true today.
But when a house stays on the market despite repeated showings, something is wrong, especially if it is a "starter" home. More expensive homes and luxury properties are another story.
The house I was talking about I saw over a year ago. It did not show well because it was full of stuff, and it was aggressively priced then. Nice house. I considered it, but then found I had to put off my move for personal reasons. Now that I go back, there are three other houses on the same street - pretty much the same house - much lower prices - and the one I saw is still there, just one minor price reduction. This does not give me the impression of extra value - it says to me that the sellers are stubborn. And if they are stubborn, what else am I getting into? Could be the house is just fine, but given that there is now more competition, why would I choose to do a deal with a seller who appears unreasonable?
I have to sell before I buy - that's going better than I expected, there has been a lot of interest. But I know I can't let it be on the market too long. So I look for feedback constantly. I have a specific idea of three or four houses that I want - so I guess that makes me "motivated"!!!
I'm just asking here... is that still true? Are you buyers still thinking that, even knowing the situation with the markets of excess inventory? Why? If you listen to the sellers here, they are all having difficulty selling....nothing is wrong with their home, nothing wrong with them. Isn't that kind of 'yesterday' thinking?
As a buyer I don't much concern myself with DOM. Of course I am also unconcerned with sparkling clean, staged, sterile homes vs. cluttered, dusty, and in need of a few repairs. All I am looking for is a house in a decent area that is priced with some relevance to the earning capacity of the area.
I'm just asking here... is that still true? Are you buyers still thinking that, even knowing the situation with the markets of excess inventory? Why? If you listen to the sellers here, they are all having difficulty selling....nothing is wrong with their home, nothing wrong with them. Isn't that kind of 'yesterday' thinking?
Could be the price is too high. Been watching a few properties since last October..price has come down a few times but in $2K increments. If the price was reasonable (I've done my research on the area comps) I would seriously consider it.
I will give u a price for your house. If you don't sell it within that price for a month. I will buy it from u. But give me these criteria:
1. Where? What city?
2. A house or a condo?
3. If a house? Detached or attached? Frame or brick? Any backyard or garage?
4. If condo, what is the monthly maintenace? What fl? Ant elavator? Any garage?
5. What is the property tax?
6. How many br and bath?
7. What is the sq. ft.?
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