You May Not Need A New _______!

Get Your _______ Checked By A Specialist

Once upon a time a prospective home seller ordered a pre-inspection to learn what maintenance and repairs might be needed to prepare the home for sale. A good inspector conducted a thorough inspection and made several typical recommendations that good inspectors make, including that a specialist be contacted to further assess the _______.

One _______ Specialist Said

The homeowner found a specialist, who visited the home to inspect the _______. Actually, that's not quite what this specialist set out to do. It would be more accurate to say that this specialist visited the home to sell a new _______. Having brought no tools or diagnostic aids of any kind, but having brought samples, sales literature and a smooth sales style, this specialist told the homeowner that the _______ couldn't be salvaged, but a new top-of-the-line _______ would pretty much guarantee that this house would sell faster than any other house in the neighborhood.

Two Other _______ Specialists Said

The homeowner's real estate broker had also recommended two different specialists based on past experience; one that does sell and repair _______s, and one that only inspects _______s but does not sell or repair them. Each of these specialists later visited the home and advised the homeowner that the _______ did not require replacement at all, that it was fundamentally sound and required only some repair that would cost less than 10% of the cost of a new _______.

The Broker's Opinion

It's easy for real estate brokers to encourage prospective sellers to spend a bunch of money on things. It's not the broker's money and any improvements make the marketing a little easier. But the right advice is advice based on the prospective seller's bottom line and timeline, not how easy or difficult marketing will be for the broker. In this case, the prospective seller's real estate broker advised the homeowner that the cost difference between a repaired _______ and a new _______ could not be made up in the sale price, because as long as the _______ was properly repaired and fundamentally sound, buyers wouldn't be willing to pay a premium for new, over sound.

A Few Morals To The Story

This simple story illustrates a few common sense facts. First, make sure you are getting advice from people who want to help you make the best decisions for you, not sell you on the best decisions for themselves. Second, people who have already earned your trust are likely to try to keep it, by referring you to others who have already earned their trust. And finally, a good real estate broker can save you far more that the cost of their commission, even before a sale, by helping you navigate a process in which there are plenty of vultures eager to take advantage of inexperienced real estate buyers and sellers.