The Seller's Role in Selling a Willoughby House
What is the seller’s role in getting their house sold?
I get this question a lot from my Willoughby Home Sellers and surrounding sellers in Lake County, Cuyahoga County and Geauga County.
Sellers are always wanting to chip in and while I do the bulk of everything there is to do in the home selling process, there are simply some things that I just can’t do for you and below is the outline (and examples) of what is needed from you, the seller to get your house sold.
- Appointments
- Make it easy for buyers to see the house & make them feel comfortable
- Allow easy access to the house - clear pathways, make sure the door can open/close smoothly, trim back bushes and so on
- Allow ALL Showings - unless a household member is ill or there is some unexpected situation or emergency, Allow All Showings. You can’t sell the house if the buyers can’t get in to see it
- Prepare for the showing - make the beds, clean out the sinks, put items away, don’t cook foods with lingering odors (like fish)
- For evening showings make sure there is a motion light where the lockbox and front door are and an automatic light inside the house, especially important if the house is vacant
- Be Attractive
- Make sure front entrance is clean of any debris and dirt
- Make the easy repairs - leaking faucets, sticky doors, broken locks, loose railings, cracked window panes
- Clean everything - carpets, door handles, light switches, appliances, ceiling fans, basements and garages
- Service the mechanics
- Disclose issues even if it seems as though the buyer would notice the issue
- Be Willing
- To Decorate for Sale - this means hire a professional stager who will create a buyer mood, place furniture for easy flow or bring in furniture to accent the house if needed
- To Fix Issues - when it’s in your power and within reason, fix the issues that might come up on buyer feedback, like remove wallpaper or change out carpet
- To Adjust Listing Price based on buyer feedback or to combat a Fatal Flaw **Fatal Flaws** are generally not fixable or too costly to repair, such as property on a main street, backs up to train tracks or commercial property, structural and foundation issues
- To Listen to Feedback - At some point I may have to deliver poor feedback. If this happens, stay open to the buyer’s point of view. Typically if one buyer feels a certain way, there’s a good chance another buyer will too
- To Review & Respond to All Offers - At some point we may receive a ‘low-ball’ offer. This could be the buyer’s way of testing the waters and some people simply need to feel they have given their all to get the lowest price. We’ll review the offer and break it down piece by piece and respond with a counter offer that is reasonable to you and lets the buyer know you are willing to work with them while weeding out the buyers that are not truly serious about buying the house
- To Say Goodbye to the House Now - once the house is on the market, it becomes a product, like any other product for sale. It is much easier to get through this process if you say your goodbyes as soon as you put it on the market, removing the emotional attachments as much as you possibly can will help you to make clear, informed decisions and will ultimately lead to the final goal of selling your house and moving on with your plans
Copyright© by Christine Pappas 2013 *ALL RIGHTS RESERVED*
*The Seller’s Role in Selling a Willoughby House*
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