Not having a marketing plan
Not planning or understanding the marketing approach that your listing agent will use when promoting a home. When selling your home there are no guarantees that the ultimate buyer of your home will have simply walked through the front door. In many cases you may have to bring your home to the buyer. Effective marketing will help ensure that your property receives maximum exposure to attract a ready, willing and able buyer in the shortest period of time. Ask your Realtor to list for you all of the ways he/she intends to market your home and on what time-line. Also, be sure to ask if your home is being posted on the MLS listing service and advertised on the Internet.
Not conducting a pre-inspection of the condition of your home
Do not take for granted the condition of your home. When you're preparing your house for sale, remember the importance of first impressions. A buyer's first impression can make or break whether they even want to go inside for a look. Beginning with the curb appeal of your home is just for starters. True, getting the buyer into your home is a good sign however, that is just the beginning. Most buyers are looking for the charm on a new house and it is the little things that make a difference. Please look at my checklist for sellers to help you properly prepare for that first prospective buyer. It could make a huge difference in your final sales price.
Not disclosing problems with your property to your agent
The false hope that imperfections in your home won’t be detected is a terrible assumption. Home inspections will discover problems relating to health, safety, and even environmental concerns and is part of most sales contracts. The most recent trend is that many contracts to purchase ask for a seller’s disclosure statement. In many cases, these issues have been or can be factored into the home's listing price.
Trying to get personally involved with the sales process
Seeing that prospective buyer heading up the walkway to your home definitely gets the heart going. However, you must remember that a Realtor has worked hard to get that prospective buyer prepared before ever showing them your property. Thinking you need to be in the home to explain things to a prospective buyer is not always in your best interest. Most potential buyers usually feel more comfortable if they can speak freely to the real estate professional without the owners being present. If people unaccompanied by an agent request to see your property, it is advisable for you to refer them to your real estate professional for an appointment. It's also a good idea to make sure they are pre-qualified by a mortgage company. You could contact a local company from the Yellow Pages or visit RDULoans.com.
Not understanding the best possible ways to price your home
Perhaps the most challenging aspect of selling a home is listing it at the correct price. It's one of several areas where the assistance of a skilled real estate agent can more than pay for itself. Listing the home too high can be as bad as too low. If the listing price is too high, you'll miss out on a percentage of buyers looking in the price range where your home should be. This is the flaw in thinking that you'll always have the opportunity to accept a lower offer. Chances are the offers won't even come in, because the buyers who would be most interested in your home have been scared off by the price and aren't even taking the time to look. By the time the price is corrected, you've already lost exposure to a large group of potential buyers. The listing price becomes even trickier to set when prices are quickly rising or falling. It's critical to be aware of where and how fast the market is moving - both when setting the price and when negotiating an offer. Again, an experienced, well-trained agent is always in touch with market trends - often even to a greater extent than appraisers, who typically focus on what a property is worth if sold as-is, right now.
Not planning your move earlier enough
Many sellers simply don't plan their move early enough and then feel totally overwhelmed at the time of moving out of the house. If you are able to move at any time of the year, don't wait until summer, the peak-moving season. Consider also that the first and last few days of the month are extra busy. If you plan to sell your house, get it on the market as soon as possible. Keep a record of all expenses related to the move, some of which may be tax deductible. Fill out the Personal Household Inventory for each room. This is important for establishing the amount of declared valuation for the shipment and as a permanent inventory for insurance purposes. List, as nearly as possible, the year of purchase and original cost of each item. Attach any invoices or records of purchase to the completed inventory. Prepare a separate high-value inventory if the shipment will contain articles of "extraordinary" value. The following list includes items that might fall into this category:
-Antiques
-Art Collections
-Cameras
-China Collections
-Computer Equipment
-Crystal
-Figurines
-Firearms
-Jewelry
-Manuscripts
-Oriental Rugs
-Silver
-Stones Or Gems
-Tapestries
-TVs Or Stereos
Also, unless you have been given a binding moving estimate where a firm cost is established in advance, the exact cost of a move cannot be determined until after the shipment has been loaded on the van and weighed. The weight on which charges are based is calculated by weighing the van before and after loading. The total cost of the move will include transportation charges, any charges for declared valuation, plus charges for any extra services performed at your request. All of these charges are based on tariff rate schedules.
|
