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A Savvy Seller's 10 Commandments

By Leigh Bates

Real Estate Agent with Atlantic & Pacific Real Estate

May 15, 2007 02:47 PM

Most of the Dallas Fort Worth Housing Market is hovering between a Buyer & Sellers Market. If you are serious about selling your home, then you should be serious about hiring the right person to sell it.

Thou Shalt Not:

Test the Market. Statistics of the market are telling enough, Make sure that your agent does their research to provide you ALL the facts.
Hire an agent without interviewing them. Not only should the agent you hire be a strong negotiator and have an aggressive marketing plan, but for your sake they should be organized and a great communicator. A Realtor wears a lot of hats and you should have someone who is organized and a great communicator for a seamless transaction.
Ask your real estate agent to cut his commission. If you do your research and hire the right Realtor, they will certainly EARN their commission.
Leave your Hello Kitty collection set up in the den. Less is more. It might be obvious, but put up your valuables, get rid of clutter, clean the dirty dishes in the sink. Make your home comfortable for Company.
Hire your mom's best friend Sally to represent you. It's never a good idea to mix business with pleasure...
Listen to your neighbors when they tell you to price your home a little higher. Of course they would like it to sell for more - but if you want it to sell - Price it Right!
Leave "updates" like removing gold flocked wallpaper to the buyer so that they can "put in what they want". Buyers have a hard enough time seeing past your furniture to envision themselves living in your home. Outdated cosmetics can be costly - and when they find a home that's already done the work - they WILL be willing to pay more.
Defer maintenance items. Would you buy a home that hasn't been well maintained? Can you say costly money pit?
Try to sell "By Owner". Unless of course, you have the ability to show your home at a moments notice, read the buyers and know which points to focus upon, have the ability to qualify your buyers, know where to market the property so that other prospective buyers will see it... and then what happens when you get the contract - how do you protect yourself?
Think that your home is listed - BELIEVE your home is for sale. The sooner you recognize that your home is going to be sold, and will one day soon be someone else's, you will not see these points as mere suggestions, but as the genetic code necessary for causing a home to be sold!