Not too long ago, an agent in my office suggested a listing strategy which makes a lot of sense. She tells her North Shore listing clients to emotionally relinquish ownership of their homes as soon as they make the decision to put it on the market. This is not always an easy task to accomplish. Most people have a large portion of their ego intertwined within their home. This is their baby. The place where they raised their children, executed their decorating genius and is filled with all of those wonderful cherished memories.
However, the new buyer does not care about any of those things. It is a lot easier to let the progression of the home marketing process move forward if the homeowner will "just let go". All of the decluttering, de-personalization, neutralizing and staging can easily move forward if the seller is able to release themselves from this lovely, but inanimate object.
In addition, the feedback from showings, which can often "ruffle the feathers" of the homeowner, can just roll off "like water on a ducks’s back", when the seller doesn’t take it personally. And then finally there is the inspection report. If the seller views it as just another buyer’s negotiating device, rather than a personal attack, it is a lot easier to get the deal moving toward closing.
The Master's Key Realty LLC -Windsor, CT - HARTFORD COUNTY - Windsor, CT
Broker/Realtor, ABR, CRS,GRI, PSCS, SFR, Notary Pu
This is so true! Once the sellers have "emotionally relinquished" their home, and start identifying it as a HOUSE rather than a HOME, it becomes a simple business transaction. Every decision can be weighed on it's own merits, and not on how they FEEL about their home.
Feb 03, 2011 11:51 AM
Reading, Pottstown, Norristown, Philadelphia - Collegeville, PA
ARTI Home Inspections, ASHI Certified Home Inspect
This certainly is great advice to Sellers! As a home inspector in PA, I see this all too often that the Seller's ego is so intertwined with their home that they may take the home inspection as a personal insult rather than just another part of this business transaction. If the Agents can offer their Sellers a different way of looking at this "event" of putting their home on the market, this could help reduce some of those hard feelings.
Feb 03, 2011 11:55 AM
Roy Wheeler Realty Co. - Charlottesville, VA
Realtor, Charlottesville, Serving Central Virginia
Advance Realty Team Jenisch - Bloomingdale, IL
also from a value aspect, many can not get over in this market what the true value of their home. They see it as being worth 10% more because of the personal memories...
Feb 06, 2011 04:31 AM
Comments(4)