IT'S MORE THAN PRICE FOLKS. IT'S LOCATION, PRICE, TERMS AND CONDITION".
I have been saying for years that REALTORS don't "sell homes". By that comment I mean that for any given property or home, what sells it is as follows (in order from least changeable to most changeable):
- Location - Most important since it cannot be changed (at least not without major expense and difficulty).
- Condition - Very important, but can be changed within reason.
- Access - Very important since buyers wil not jump through hoops to see a home.
Given any set of the above conditions, there is one major factor that the sellers can easily change and will have the ultimate impact on the whether the property sells. That is Price. Therefore, I agree that it is more than Price, a property cannot sell without the correct Price.
IT'S MORE THAN PRICE FOLKS. IT'S LOCATION, PRICE, TERMS AND CONDITION".
WE WALKED AWAY FROM ANOTHER LISTING THIS WEEK. WHAT?? Lenn walked away from another listing?? Good Grief!! How are agents in the Homefinders.com network going to survive if we continue to walk away from listing opportunities??
PERHAPS THIS WASN'T MUCH OF AN "OPPORTUNITY".
LOCATION: Sure, Mr. Seller, your home is in a very popular location. However, the average price in this location for homes similar to yours in size and features is $450,000, not the $550,000 list price you want.
PRICE: Sure, Mr. Seller, the home down the road that you mention did sell for the price you want. However, homes in your area were all selling for significantly more 2 years ago than they are today.
TERMS: Sure Mr. Seller, it may be possible to get a buyer to agree to your price, but it isn't likely and may not be possible that they'll agree to a term that will give you a 4 month rent-back.
CONDITION: Sure Mr. Seller, it may be possible that your home will sell for the top of the range for similar homes in your area. However, you will have to put the home in selling condition and remove the clutter from the house, remove the items stored in the spare bedrooms, replace or repair the failed thermal windows, scrape and repaint the chipped and peeling paint on the exterior trim, remove the dead and dying shrubs and replace the 30 year old roof with obvious leaks. Until those repairs are made, it's unlikely that anyone is going to have an interest in your home for sale at a top price. Then there is the matter of the half finished basement, the bonus room in the attic that was started but not finished and the fish pond that is "almost finished".
Sorry, Mr. Seller. I know that you've run the numbers and that, based on comparable sale prices of homes sold in your area, you should be able to net $320,000. However, YOUR HOME IS NOT READY TO BE LISTED, SHOWN OR SOLD.
"JUST PUT IT IN THE MLS AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS??" We don't want to list a property if it can't be . . .
1) entered in the MLS,
2) a yard sign installed,
3) photos taken,
4) brochures made,
5) a web site designed and launched,
6) the home for sale listed on the Internet and the
7)house made available for buyers to tour.Sorry, Mr. Seller. If we enter a home for sale in the MLS before the property is ready, we would be losing an opportunity to sell to any prospective home buyer who would visit it. Further, the agents who preview new listings would see a home that is not ready to show to possible buyers.
"CAN'T BUYERS USE THEIR IMAGINATION?" Yes Mr. Seller and that is why we won't enter a home for sale in the MLS until the house is ready for prospective buyers to tour. Buyers use their imagination to compute how much it will cost them to replace the windows, paint the exterior trim, replace the roof and make all of the repairs and replacements that you don't want to do.
Sorry, Mr. Seller. If we put the home in the MLS in it's present condition, all you're likely to get is low offers from buyers looking for a deal or from investors who are looking for properties to rehabilitate and rent. Your home is not in that price range. Further, the appraiser for the buyer's lender will make note of defects that affect valuation.
WHY DID WE WALK AWAY?? The home is not in condition to sell TODAY. It may be at a time in the future. However, in our experience, when a home owner shows a tendency to start new upgrades and improvements but neglects to maintain the existing home, that house is likely to remain a "work in progress" long after it is listed for sale. That is, of course, unless the seller is willing and able to sell the home at a significant discount to other homes for sale in the area.
WILL WE REGRET NOT TAKING A LISTING THAT IS CLEARLY NOT READY TO SELL?? No. In fact, once the decision was made, we were very much relieved. Whew!!
If an agent doesn't believe that the seller is going to be a cooperative partner in the listing adventure, JUST WALK AWAY!
Courtesy, Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988.
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