When I was 16, I bought this really cool 1970 Camaro for $1800. I had it for one month before I smashed it into a tree (no drugs or alcohol were involved; showing off for my girlfriend and trying to outdo another friend, ugh!)
How much damage did I do? $1800! It was a total loss and I didn’t have full coverage insurance. I still owed $1800 on it (that was a lot of money then, especially for someone 16 years old). Thank goodness my income tax refund gave me the funds for most of the repairs.
My dad had a friend that owned a body shop. He offered me a way to save my car. He let me do all the menial and mundane tasks involved in fixing a wrecked car, and I helped him with heavy work like hanging a new door. It was dirty work in a hot shop that made me sweat. But it was necessary preparation that had to be done in order to get a great end result; a car that looked as good as it did before the wreck.
(This Is The Camaro After Repairs)
He discounted the repair costs because I was doing a lot of the preparation work, work almost anyone could perform. And he did all the finish work. The stuff I couldn’t do like matching the paint and doing it without runs. In other words, tasks that require specific knowledge and practice which made him a professional in his field.
I had a choice to let him do all the work and pay a higher price, or help prepare my car with sweat equity and let him apply his professional skills for a great outcome.
Selling a House
You see, I am a professional who markets and coordinates real estate transactions. My job, like the body shop owner, requires much preparation and perspiration to get your home ready for sale. The actual marketing, selling, and coordinating the sale process of your home are the skills I have that are better left to a professional with the knowledge and practice to perform them.
However, a house must first be properly prepared inside and out before going on the market. This will draw more buyers to your property and more offers. More importantly, strong offers giving you the most return on your investment in your house.
Preparation consists of:
• Cleaning inside and outside thoroughly
• Attention to landscaping (curb appeal)
• Decluttering, depersonalizing, and staging
• Painting
• Necessary repairs
These things require time and labor (preparation and perspiration). Actions almost anyone can perform and somebody has to get these things done. You must do them or pay someone to do them. I believe preparation is essential before putting your home on the market if you want terrific results.
Why Prepare?
Don’t you want the best possible outcome? Like my wrecked car, preparation is needed before you can have the best possible product on the market. The goal for my car was to restore it to a pre-wrecked condition that looked good again and would be salable. The goal for your house is to sale it in the shortest amount of time for the most amount of money! And that requires preparation and perspiration to achieve that goal.
A real estate salesman not willing to have either you or themselves take this critical first step probably just wants to “list” your home. They do not know what it takes to market your home effectively. They put up a “for sale” sign in your yard, put your house on the MLS, and they hope it sells. They make great money if the house does happen to sell. Even if it doesn’t, they benefit from phone inquiries from buyers looking for a home because of the sign in your yard. That inquiry may lead to a sell of another home your listing agent profits from.
Remember it’s your home being sold. You deserve choices. You deserve to have your home properly prepared before it is put on the market so you will benefit from a quick sale and get the most money for your home.
I had a choice with my car, either spend many hot and sweaty hours helping get it back drivable and looking good, or let it set useless and ugly. I had part of the money to get it repaired, but a half repaired total wrecked car is still not worth much, or very appealing.
I believe you should have a choice to save money or, if you prefer, have it done for you. If you have the time and willing to sweat a little bit, or a lot, and have the money to take care of the preparation yourself, then you should be rewarded for doing the menial and mundane tasks for the real estate agent selling your home. The agent however should take this in consideration and reflect it in her sales commission.
What do You Choose?
If you don’t have the time and rather have someone else take care of it for you, that’s fine also. At least you should have the option to choose how you want to proceed with the sale of your home. I had a choice with my car, either spend many hot and sweaty hours helping get it back drivable and looking good, or let it set useless and ugly.
If you choose not to properly prepare your home, then be prepared for it to sit on the market for a long time. And be prepared for low offers. Please prepare your home prior to placing it on the market. Then see the results!
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