Yesterday I got a phone call from a very pleasant man with a unique house to sell, and met with him today. His house is currently listed with another agent so I'm not going to "advertise" the house while it's still listed with the other agent. (And these photos are not of his house) But I am going to describe it since he asked me to help find a buyer, even while it's listed elsewhere. I have no problem with that. I'd love to sell his house!

This is just added! I didn't mention that "Ed" is planning to list his house with another brokerage when it expires. But only if he has good reason to do so. Right now, he's upset because his house has not sold in a year. So when his listing expires, if I can provide him with advice on how I can sell his house, without reducing the price, he will then list the house with me. But he also interviewed other agents. That's why I'm staying on top of this.

When this gentleman, we'll call him Ed, called me, he told me a little bit about his house, including the fact that it had been on the market for a year, and told me the price, and wanted to know what I would do to sell his house. I have to admit that when he told me his neighborhood and price, I immediately thought it was overpriced, (which is what his agent is telling him) and told him I needed to look at the applicable comps, as well as the active listings to determine price. He then told me that he was tired of hearing that because that's what every agent had been saying. His house had a lot more to offer than the other houses!

Right now, I can read your thoughts through your computer and mine! How many times have you heard that one before? But I proceeded to schedule an appointment anyway, then went home to start doing my research.

Today, I had my appointment with "Ed". I have to say, when I saw Ed's house, I totally changed my opinion on his price. Ed's house is worth every penny of what he's asking! I told Ed that one year on the market was the norm in our area, even though business was definitely improving. But when I pulled the recent sales for his neighborhooed, I found that only the houses that had recently sold were the ones in the section with the smaller, cheaper homes. And since his asking price is over $500,000, he's not only in the slower to non-existent sales range, he's also going to have the jumbo loan issue. But I still haven't addressed the real problem. The real problem is Ed's "in-law" apartment. The in-law area of Ed's house is absolutely incredible! It's the part of the house that actually makes Ed's house worth his asking price. But when Ed had his in-law apartment added to his house (at the time the entire house was being built), he "bent" the rules of what is allowed in Port Orange, and in his community. Now, as a result, Ed won't allow the in-law area to be advertised to the fullest extent, which is what is needed to produce the buyer for his house!

I spent 3 hours with Ed! We got along great and I gave him many ideas of things I would do differently that his current agent, had not done at all. Ed told me all the agents he had intereviewed. And I told him that he had honestly managed to find some very good agents. But I also, bluntly told Ed that he was tying our hands behind our backs by not letting us fully advertise the in-law suite. I suggested a few workarounds, but even with the workarounds, the limitations he was putting on us, would make it next to impossible to produce a buyer for his house. I'd like to tell you the suggestions I offered to Ed, but I know that Ed found me here on Active Rain, and I know he found another agent here also *cough: Midori* LOL. I ain't stupid girl. I'm not giving away all my secrets =P

So what I want to know is, if you had the opportunity to list a beautiful house in one of your favorite communities, that was actually worth the price that the seller was asking, but you couldn't advertise the part of the house that made it worth the asking price, what would you do?

• You're limitations are, you CAN advertise the in-law suite, but you can't include a photo of the kitchen or say that it has a full kitchen, which for the record is fantastic!
  
• You can include pictures of the bedroom, bathroom and living room in the in-law apartment, but you can't mention the separate entrance, or the fact that in the 3 car garage, there is a full dividing wall (without permits pulled) that separates the 2 car side from the 3rd car portion.
• You also can't mention the fact there is a private entrance from the 3rd car portion of the garage, directly into the in-law apartment.
  

Bear in mind, this can only function as an in-law suite, or possibly an area for your teen or young adult children. It definitely cannot be an apartment that you can rent out! So even if we could photograph and advertise all the features of the in-law suite, it must be clear that it cannot be rented out, due to city codes and the neighborhood HOA. But most people looking in this neighborhood will already know that, so don't get hung up there.

After all that, we still have to get past the jumbo loan price range, as well as the fact that there are very few houses in this price range that have sold this year at all. But it's my belief that those are hurdles that can be overcome, once we find a way draw in the buyers that are actually looking for a home with an "in-law apartment/long-term, comfortable, private area for other family members", given the constraints upon which "Ed" has insisted.

So what are your thoughts? Any ideas? Help me out here. I promised Ed (and his lovely wife: I met her just before I left) that I would be brainstorming for him. And I'll probably e-mail a link to this post to him. So what would you like to tell Ed?

And if you're a potential buyer for a house of this nature, please contact me today. I promised Ed that although I can't advertise his property while it's listed with another agent, I would still try to find a buyer. After all, that's the reason we have an MLS, and commissions that are shared. We all work together for the benefit of the client. And if you're interested in any type of real estate in Port Orange FL, or any of the nearby cities, make a Smart Choice and contact Lisa C. Hill with Adams Cameron & Co., REALTORS®.

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