"List with me and your house will be featured on more than 500 websites on the internet!"
Well, it you have spoken with a real estate agent about selling your house, you've probably heard that line recently. But does massive exposure really matter?
The Notorious House That Nobody Wants?
If exposure was all that mattered, then the house that was featured in movie "The Silence Of The Lambs" would have sold a long time ago.
In a recent article titled "No buyers for "Silence of the Lambs House", CBS news reports that the house has been on the market since last Summer, yet there have been no takers.
Realtor.com reports it has been the second most-viewed house on their website, so one could say that it has been "exposed," right?
Apparently, exposure is not the cure for other issues.
In other words, if you are asking more money for your house than it is worth, does telling a few billion people about "this gem of a house" really going to get it sold?
Hannibal Lecter says "no."
You Must Expose Value
Due to the way the internet allows buyers to compare houses, driving massive exposure to an improperly priced house is like yelling "look at this turkey!" Just like with an auto accident, there will be many who want to gawk, but that does not mean they will get involved.
The opposite is true as well. Having a house that is priced very well, but not exposed to the most-likely group of prospective house buyers will yield less than optimal results too.
If you are wanting to sell a house, you had better use massive exposure on a properly priced house if you want to get top dollar when it sells. And for most price ranges, in most areas, it should sell very fast to secure the top bid.
What The Experts Said About The House
When I read the article referenced above, I found a quote by an "expert" that likely will not be interpreted correctly by most readers. He stated "even though it's got notoriety, location still is a big deal."
I suspect most readers would interpret that to mean that it hasn't sold because of the house's location. But that is not true.
What that quote really means is that the house has not sold because it is overpriced.
Current buyers are not willing to spend $250,000 for a house in that location, thus they are asking too much for their house! Simply put, they are priced incorrectly.
If You Have Exposure, It's All About Value
The ability to sell a house fast is mostly influenced by the liquidity in the market. If houses are selling, yours should sell too. You simply need to price it correctly so that current buyers see value.
Since the internet became the top source of information for housebuyers, we have proven that it only takes 4 to 14 days to sell a house in a market with ample liquidity.
In Tallahassee, that means that all houses worth less than $400,000 should sell right away if they are massively exposed to the proper group of prospective buyers for that house. And a quick sale most-often yields the highest value for sellers, as buyers face fear-of-loss on properly priced houses.
So if you have a house you have or were trying to sell without success, use the following interpretations of normal buyer feedback to understand why it did not sell.
- "They wanted something newer" - For the money you are asking, buyers do not want a house as old as yours.
- "Not in the right school zone" - You have your house priced like it is located in another area (remember, they knew the school zones when they looked at your house, so they were expecting a lot more than what you have).
- "The bedrooms are too small" - For the money you are asking, your house should have bigger rooms.
- "The layout isn't right for their furniture" - Your house was not what they expected for the price that you are asking.
- "We didn't like the ___________" - For the money, the __________ should have been nicer.
- "It doesn't have a __________" - For the money, your house should have a __________.
Can you see a pattern here? Buyers are not that anything is really wrong with your house, just that you have priced your house to compete against others that do not have these issues. You are simply competing in the wrong market due to an improper valuation.
Now, if you're house has been on the market and you are getting little or no feedback, it means that buyers think you are so overpriced that they have no interest in even seeing your house. That means they do not need to visit your house to eliminate it. Ouch.
Find Your Local Expert
The funny thing about selling a house is that more than 2 of every 3 sellers choose the first agent with whom they speak about selling their house. This doesn't sound very thorough for people who are getting ready to sell their most expensive asset. Shouldn't they hire the most qualified company to help squeeze every penny out of the sale?
We find that a lot of house sellers really do not understand what they need from a real estate company to properly expose their house on the internet. Even in today's market that is shifting towards the seller, a large segment of house sellers are failing to sell their house with the first real estate agent (company) that they choose.
Because of this, we have created a free resource to help them choose their next company. Now in all fairness, it serves just as well to help you choose your first company so that you can skip the "failure" step entirely. We call the book "My House Failed To Sell, Now What?" and it is loaded with advice on what to do to sell your house.
If you have any other questions not covered in the book, simply drop me a note and we'll be in touch right away to help you.
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