Getting Your Home's Best Sales Price in a Down Market

By Bob Lucido



Our nation currently is dealing with one of the most turbulent real estate markets of the past few decades. Looking ahead to the next few months, experts anticipate that the very competitive selling environment will continue, as will the large inventory of homes for sale.

Therefore, in order to sell a home, homeowners will have to be more organized, and they'll have to work with a strong real estate company to get the best price for their home. Here are eight tips to do just that in a challenging market.



1. Choose the Right Agent

Choosing the right real estate agent can make or break the sale of your home. Working with a bad or ineffective agent can be a disaster that you can't afford during the peak spring selling season.

Before signing a listing agreement, make sure you're getting the terms that you want from your real estate company. For example, a seller satisfaction program that guarantees sellers an agreed price, a realistic timetable and agreements about qualified buyers may give you additional support and peace of mind during the selling process.



2. First Impressions

First impressions really count to buyers. Take a look at your home from the street with an unbiased eye. How does it look compared with your neighbors? Cleaning up your yard, putting in a few shrubs and painting may make a critical difference. Also, in 2009, most sellers put photos of their home online. A darker room and dark paint won't show well online, so plan ahead to showcase your home well.



3. Staging

Once buyers are inside your home, what will they think? The staging of the interior of your home is vital. While you may be used to living with all of your personal possessions, buyers may see your home as cluttered with "stuff" and be turned off. Hiring a professional staging company can be useful. Your agent also should be able to give you tips on balancing simple design features with warmth; remember, a room that is too empty is not appealing, either.



Tip 4: Maintenance

Does your home suffer from deferred maintenance? That list of to-do items you have been putting off needs to get done. Dripping faucets, broken tiles and scuffed and scraped paint all are red flags to buyers. These and many more serious maintenance items may need to be addressed if your home is to be sold for top dollar.



Tip 5: Some Interior Changes

Will major changes to your home bring it up to date and make it more marketable? If you have an older home, you are competing against newer homes with layouts and amenities that are popular now. While major remodeling is too expensive for some sellers, sometimes minor adjustments can make your home sell competitively. Often, small improvements such as a carpet and paint can make a huge visual difference that usually gains you more in value than they cost.



Tip 6: Marketing

Part of what your real estate agent should be doing is guiding you on the marketing of your home. This includes things such as making your home available for showings and giving you good advice for pricing and terms. There's a psychology for pricing your house well the first time, instead of readjusting based on market reaction (starting too high and then dropping your price, for example). You want maximum price and value for your home, but you want it to be well-priced.



Tip 7: Your Own Promotion

Don't be shy about telling everyone you know that your home is for sale. While your real estate agent should be doing a good bit of marketing on his own, don't forget that every person, on average, has a sphere of influence of about 200 people - who, in turn, each have a sphere of influence of about 200 people. This means that, in just two "steps," you are in contact with up to 40,000 people, one of whom may just be in the market for a new home.



Tip 8: Preparation

Be prepared for what awaits you at closing. It is not uncommon in the current market for sellers in tough spots to come out of closing the sale and their property with little or no money in their pocket. In fact, it is increasingly more common for sellers in particularly hard-hit areas to actually owe money at closing. This is something you should be talking about with your agent throughout the process and when negotiating a contract on your home.



Bob Lucido is president of The Bob Lucido Team, a group of real estate agents associated with RE/MAX Advantage Realty in the Baltimore-Washington Corridor. He can be contacted at 240-295-6000 and via www.boblucidoteam.com.