any ideas on selling a house (Scranton, York: hardwood floors, for sale, real estate)

[ziggy01]

Hey there. I am trying to sell my house and I have not had much success. I will be starting a new job that will force me to relocate from where I am at now. I won't be looking at anything new right away because I will mainly be staying in hotel rooms ( sales job). I have had my house advertised in a couple local papers but really no bites. If anyone has ideas on how to sell a little faster I would appreciate your input. I was hoping to use this site a little bit more to maybe find some buyers. I posted a thread asking for help on using this site correctly but no responses instead just kicking my threads off when I stated I am not sure how this site works and I am new. I am not trying to cause any trouble or abuse a site that I think is very informative, just a easy going guy trying to move forward in his life. Thank You.

[wandrew]

I will be needing a home in the Lehigh Valley region, I've got 60 days relocation living covered in the beginning of 08. Looking to be settled by March. If you have some details, asking price and location as well as estimated property taxes, I am interested. PM me details if you like.

[ff18wife]

First, I would ask around for a good, reliable realtor. It sounds like you've been trying to sell it on your own and not having much luck. You also don't say where you are located. I think, as you can probably read around here, some locations are more desirable than others. Just some thoughts based on what you've posted.

[scrantonluna]

It's a flooded market right now, so you may need to try something 'above and beyond.' I've seen sellers offering all kinds of things lately, from a prepaid home warranty, to cash back for furniture, to offering to paint walls any color the buyer asks. I think an open house usually helps, but you have to make the most of it.

[pattymegan]

A little bit of creative marketing could help your cause. Look for a realtor that utilizes creative techniques. Placing an ad in the paper wont really do much in this market. Open houses are also helpful especially if the information pertaining to the home is available for the potential buyers to take home and review. It sounds as if you might be trying to do this without a realtor however, you might want to re-think that because the house can gain more exposure through the realtor than through individual efforts.

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

A house priced right to sell, with a virtual tour and the MLS is a winning combination.

[ShannonMilligan]

Couple of things
Have a GREAT realtor. Interview them. Get someone who is actually getting homes sold in your are
price it right. get comps for the last month. then price lower than those comps for a quicker sale (if that is possible in this market)
maybe try an incentive. Maybe offer sellers assist up to $X thousand. (I think $5K is a good number) And, maybe offer a bonus to the buyers agent...this will (hopefully) get agents to want to show your home...if they get a little extra, why not? I would say $1K to $3K bonus depending on what you can afford. And state that it is with an acceptable offer...so if you get lowball offers (which you probably will) you can ask them to not collect on their bonus.
Change your price slightly every 3-4 weeks. Maybe just $500 at a time. This will make your home show up on the realtors "hotsheet" every time you move it...Gets the home back in their face.
Put up flyers the day before your open house...maybe at stores that carry the home books. (ask first!)
make sure your realtor puts pictures on realtor.com I know I go right past homes that don't have pictures. More important, make sure they are good pictures.
make your home buyer friendly. if you have a red wall, paint it. wall paper-take it down and paint. Make sure everything is fixed-don't give buyers a reason not to want your home. declutter-take things off of the counters, take knick-knacks down...put these items in a box and put in storage. (you don't have to make your home cold, just more plain so people can picture themselves there)
stage-if you don't have a table where there is an eat-in area, get one. You can just get a card table and cover it with a table cloth...you just need to show what the space can be used for
groups-if you belong to a group and they have a message board, tell them about your home. word of mouth is great. i would also tell your neighbors...you never know if they may have a friend who wants to move into the area
finally, sit and wait. try not to stress. it could take a year or more in this market. my home has been on for 6 months and we have had two offers in the past month. the first was no good b/c they needed to sell their home first and we are working on the 2nd. (praying it goes through)
good luck

[SteelCityRising]

Don't forget about "staging" your home for sale as well. Here are some tips to consider for your next open house:

-Bake a plate of chocolate-chip cookies and set them on the kitchen table for potential buyers to chow down on while browsing. The sweet scent of baked goods floating through your home will instantly put them in a more positive mood, and chocolate releases endorphins to make you more apt to experience pleasure.

-Make sure to utilize natural light to the best of your ability. Make sure all Venetian or vertical blinds are open, make sure shades are pulled up, make sure curtains are symmetrically tied open, etc. Nothing is more uplifting than feeling sunlight shining down on you through a home's windows as you poke your nose around.

-Make sure your home is completely free of unsightly clutter. You might like your childrens' drawings hanging on the refrigerator or your brass unicorn collection that takes over half of your den, but potential home buyers see it only as an obstruction to picturing their own lives in your home.

-Greenery also helps to catch buyers' attention and improve their moods. A few potted mums on the front steps, along perhaps with ferns in hanging baskets on the porch and a vase of fresh flowers sitting in the middle of the dining room table (accented by a wine bottle and two wine glasses).

-What color are your walls? Warm yet neutral colors are popular. You might like the romantic decor of your bright red master bedroom, but very vivid, overpowering colors can easily turn off potential home buyers who don't share your taste and dread painting.

-If you live in an older home, check to see if there is hardwood flooring beneath some of your wall-to-wall carpeting. Hardwood flooring is a HUGE plus to potential home buyers, and the minimal time and effort taken to pull up some of that carpeting in order to refinish your hardwood floors could most certainly pay off.

-Location, location, location. Considering your home is in Waymart, you should be sure to highlight the home's close proximity to Victorian Honesdale, Lake Wallenpaupack, Elk Mountain, and Scranton. A lot of NY and NJ retirees are now moving to Wayne County (mostly to Honesdale and Hawley), but Waymart is likely to pop up onto their radar soon enough as well so they can live nearer to the shopping options in Scranton. Waymart is a very nice, quiet community that would be perfectly-suited for families or retirees alike. Singles and younger folks would probably not find the relative seclusion of the borough to be as desirable, so keep your potential clientele in mind.

-Listing your home ONLINE is ESSENTIAL in what is rapidly becoming an oversaturated residential market in NEPA. If you're not going through a realtor, then you'll have difficulty doing this unless you create your own domain name and create your own web page specifically for your home. Most people don't even look in the newspapers anymore for homes, turning first to the internet to resources like Realtor.com, CraigsList, and the local board of realtors websites, amongst others. High-quality photographs are ESSENTIAL as well in such a competitive market where people have too many options to choose from to narrow their choices down solely from making appointments to see homes. Some folks now immediately write-off homes or are drawn to them based solely upon the images they see.

-Consider listing your home in the classifieds of a newspaper in Greater New York City, as most of Wayne County's newer residents are coming from within an hour's radius of the city. People tiring of the rat race might pick up the paper, glance over the classifieds, and notice your small-town retreat. I know I said that newspapers aren't used as much anymore for real estate advertising, but putting an ad in a newspaper on Long Island, North Jersey, or even NYC proper would certainly net you some inquiries, as to them PA is the "promised land."

Best of luck!

[poconosmama]

I agree with High Hat, its all about price and realtor these days. If you have a crappy realtor like we do your house will just sit. If you arent priced in that norm to low range for your area you may not get a second look because there are so many houses available. We're at a point where we may just stay even though my husband got relocation money.

[ziggy01]

To everyone giving me their thoughts and advice, it is all greatly appreciated. Have already received very good ideas and look forward to more. I am sure I will have a few more questions in the near future, but for now thank you very much.