Looking Out From the Garage

Wayback Wednesday... Homes ARE Selling!

This home is owned by a couple, who are writer...
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A couple of years ago I wrote about a deal on a property I ran across.  It was priced around $330,000.  At the time I said that it would have around $75,000 equity.  It sold for $300,000.  The most recent comps in the neighborhood have sold around $400,000 in the last couple of months.  Also of note, it was only on the market for about two weeks.

Since then, I have posted a couple of other times about properties that looked like good deals.  None of them were on the market for more than a couple of weeks... often less.

I have also been working recently with a buyer that made 7 offers before getting one through.  In 4 of those cases (at least) the properties were in multiple offer situations.  Our offers were close to (in one case... OVER) list price.  These were properties that were on the market LESS than a week. He wasn't the only one... other buyers I have dealt with over the last year have been in the same boat... lots of offers and a lot of multiple offer situations.

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden
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So, in what is supposed to be THE worst housing market since Adam and Eve were foreclosed in the Garden of Eden, there are properties selling for OVER list price, within DAYS of coming on the market.  Of course, there are others that languish for months (or years) without so much as an offer... and barely a look.

If you are a seller, the secret is the price.  If you are giving it away, there WILL be a line.  A low price MAY actually start a bidding war... or it may not.  But price HAS to represent value to the buyer.

If you are a buyer, time may NOT be on your side.  Low prices and killer mortgage rates are pulling people in.  There is a good chance that the property YOU are attracted to, if priced right, will be attractive to someone else.  Make realistic offers (regardless of the list price).

Of course, a LOT more goes into it... if you need an agent that understands it, feel free to give me a shout.

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7 comments • Lane Bailey - REALTOR & Car Guy • December 01 2010 09:22PM

Into the mailbag V... We are selling, what should we do to our house?

Once again... off to the inbox to see what needs to be answered:

Lane, we want to sell our house in a few months.  What would be the best way to increase the value and get it to sell faster?

Good questions, both.   

First, what I always recommend is that your house be clean, uncluttered, and depersonalized.  I recommend that most sellers consult with a stager at least a few weeks before listing.  They might recommend paint, removing wallpaper, or updating some parts of the house.  These will increase the value and help it sell faster.  

Paint (especially if doing it yourself) will increase the value well beyond the investment.  Going to the local home improvement store and dropping $200 may yield a couple thousand dollars in return.  That is a pretty good Return on Investment (RoI).  Of course, the right colors will do the best job... and that is part of the stager's job.  Bold colors are usually not the ticket... but they might end up being exactly the ticket for some homes.  

Having a garage sale and getting rid of "stuff" that allows your house to have more open space is also almost always a good idea.   I can't imagine any better RoI than collecting $500 and then increasing the sale price of the house by a couple thousand.  And then you won't have to pack or move that stuff...

Replacing carpet, or refinishing wood floors may also be a good investment.  But, now we are talking less about money and more about time on market.  You might (or might not) clear the $2000 for new carpet.  You probably will get the return from spending a few hundred dollars to have the floors redone if they need it... at all).

Doing much more will probably not result in an increase of value that will offset the cost, much less give a positive RoI.  But, updating a kitchen or bath may certainly speed the sale.  Most buyers don't really want to buy a house to renovate.  They might say they do, but when it gets right down to it, they pick the pretty one. 

So, there you have it.  Keep in mind that I haven't seen your house, and we haven't consulted a stager.  

Final thought...  I keep mentioning consulting with a stager.  Some agents will tell you they do their own staging.  They may.  They may be good at it, too.  But, I have an accountant and a lawyer.  I am not a stager, and I don't have the same level of training.  My stagers aren't real estate agents.  If one spends all of their time staging, they will be better at it than someone that does it occasionally.  Same thing for real estate agents.

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11 comments • Lane Bailey - REALTOR & Car Guy • February 28 2008 08:39PM