Creative Selling of your Tigard Home

If you are trying to sell your home in Tigard now, you know that it is a buyer's market. You have been keeping the house in tip-top showing condition and you have selected a Realtor you are convinced is doing a good job of marketing your home in the places that buyers are likely to search for homes, but, coupled with the time of year and the current housing crisis, showings are down and buyers are scarce.

Any offer that does come in will most likely be less than what you want. If you have owned your Tigard home for three years or less, and need to sell, you can not expect to make much of a profit. If you have owned your home for more than three years, there is some wiggle room. Cherish any offer that does come in. These buyers have chosen your house, so you do have something to work with. It may be time to act "outside the box" and shake things up, provided that negotiations between the agents are going nowhere. Orchestrate the following or very similar scenario with your agent.

These are not ordinary times and you may have to take creative measures to get your house sold. Contrary to my usual advice in normal times, I suggest the buyer and seller meet in the house. This allows you to interject a personal connection into the negotiations. Take your time through this whole process. No posturing and no contrary opinions. This is an exercise in fact finding and cooperation. Your aim is for the buyers to invest some quality time with you. It's hard for them to say no to someone they like.

Set the scene with the smell of freshly baked cookies that you will serve with a beverage. Take them on a tour of the house again. Listen carefully as to why the buyers like your house and reinforce those sentiments with your complete agreement. Listen for other clues. Do they love the drapes or the throw rug in the entryway? Is there a particular painting they like? Answer in a positive fashion that "They could be included." Discover some incentives you can offer them to get the price up.

Find out if financing is holding them back. This may have already been discussed between the agents, however, your task is to get the buyers talking to develop trust and rapport in finding a solution to a common goal. If financing is an issue, you can help them with closing costs or a rate buy-down. This preserves some of their personal cash and might be all that is needed to make the sale. Would you spend a few thousand more dollars to get your house sold?

It is possible that the negotiations had stalled because the agents negotiating styles clashed or there was some underlying personal tension. If you have been close to making a deal, getting face to face with the buyer may solve what ever obstacles need to be overcome. There is no guarantee that this approach will work, but what do you have to lose by trying? These are uncertain times in the real estate market and imaginative solutions are required.

Wayne B. Pruner is a Realtor® at Oregon First, who works in the Tigard Oregon area. He is ready to help you with all your real estate needs. His phone number is 503-891-0795. Here are links to his real estate website and his real estate blog.