Let Me Help You Sell It Yourself in Grants Pass, Oregon!
More thoughts on FSBO's (For Sale By Owner.)
I'm sure you realize that in this present market, there is no room for trial and error. Any trial made that does not succeed is a costly error!
If you have decided to sell, then make a total commitment to sell!
The best example I can think of is Hannibal's crossing of the Alps; after his armies and elephants had disembarked, and traveled a short distance, a rearward glance by the astonished troops revealed the entire fleet burning! There was no going back, no return! Hannibal had made the total commitment to succeed and burned his fleet!
You must make a total commitment if you wish to sell your home. If you are unable to adopt this mindset, don't play with it. If you're going to board a plane for New York, you can't get partially on board, you must get aboard 100%.
In a market such as we are in, that is predicted to last for a long time to come, there is no room for hasty decisions and ineffective marketing attempts once you have decided to go ahead, of course I can't blame you for attempting to sell it on your own! You can save a ton of money, if all goes well, but sometimes it's like needing surgery and studying surgical procedures online an then operating on yourself. It may work, but if you don't do it correctly, you could end up dead! If you mess up your marketing of your home, you may lose the market and get to a point of no return.
If you want to try marketing your own home, I certainly wish you the best of luck! Seriously. I'm in this business, and I won't market my own home. I've owned a lot of homes, but I pay a Realtor every time!
At the very least, if you wish to try it, then keep in mind what you must do -- clean up the place; depersonalize and de-clutter the house. Put everything you can into storage, and do all of the things to make that total commitment. See my blog posting from 08/23/2009 "Tips For Selling Your Home" for more detailed information.
Most importantly: Price it right! Don't waste your time testing the market! It's already been tested, trust me, and it has failed all tests. Consult the experts. Ask a Realtor. Use my website www.glswansonhomes.com to watch homes that sell. An excellent guideline to pricing is "dollars per square foot." Don't worry so much about what people are asking, the important thing is what they are getting! What price per square foot are homes actually bringing?
A home with granite counters, tile floors, crown moldings, upgraded carpets and up to the minute embellishments may sell new for $175 to $200 per square foot, and now as a used home in a tough market, sells for $145 per foot. Compare that home with the same size and similar neighborhood where the homes have Formica counters, vinyl floors and lower graded carpets that sold new for $150 per square foot and are now selling for $110 per square foot.
Although these homes probably will not compete with each other, todays' buyers are looking for the deal! Be aware of what you have, and price accordingly.
Four rules to follow:
1) Get it on the market when it's "ready" to sell and not before!
2) Price it where it is super-competitive right from day one!
3) If it hasn't sold in 30 days, drop the price and keep dropping every 30 days until it's gone!
4) Market it every way you can, but keep in mind that most homes sell through Internet marketing!
Good Luck!
Sincerely,
Gary L. Swanson
Check out my website!
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