Whether you are selling in Frisco Texas or Portland Washington, these three Ps (pricing, preparation and presentation) will help you sell faster and for more money every time. If you are working with an agent or as some try selling by yourself keep these three things in your mind as you move through the process.
Pricing
This is one of the biggest challenges in selling real estate you can confront. As a seller, whether working with an agent or not, it is important to overcome your emotional attachment to your home. Buyers, and you know this as 
I am sure you were a buyer before you were a seller, are not attached to your home in the same manner but we sure want them to get emotionally attached to your home. Now you have overcome that emotion it is time to discuss pricing.
The market will determine the price of your home. This takes some information to make a decision on price. One of the first things you do is review what has sold in your area that is comparable. If you are working with a real estate agent they will most likely generate a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) and maybe even a market snapshot of some sort. If you are trying this on your own you may have a very tough time finding comparable sales since Zillow, Trulia and many other of these websites do not provide sold information. Hence another reason to consider working with an agent.
Then you will want to determine the competition you face in the market which will be the other listings in your area. It would be good to go view these properties to determine how the competition stacks up to your offering. You can do this with an agent very easily but once again if you are trying this on your own, you may have to wait for open houses in order to get into a home that you want to compare. Hence another reason to work with an agent.
You get through your R & D and you price it right for the market. Check the first P on your list.
Preparation
Remove the clutter. Pack away everything that does not make your home look good. I mean look good to others. The corner where all your family photos are hanging should be taken down and if necessary a nice painting or 
framed landscape picture might be a better selection. Buyers are not interested in your family they are interested in theirs. You would like them to be able to virtually see how their furniture, artwork and families will look in this house if they were to purchase your home. If you have any doubts, go look at some model homes and how they are decorated. New builders have this down to an art form.
If you are working with an agent, they will have some ideas and can also provide personal recommendations for a home stager. There are many thoughts about stagers. Some people think they do not add any value. perhaps they may not raise the value but they will certainly help sell your home faster and help maintain if not upgrade your home's value. If you are on your own, check out the new model homes. Hence yet another reason to work with an agent.
Presentation
Now that you are your emotional attachment and you have staged or prepped your home, it is time to show it off. It is important to start thinking of this house as just another asset you are trying to sell. This means it should be available as much as possible. When I work with sellers in the North Texas Frisco area, I let them know I would like to be able to show their house any time between 8 AM and 8 PM, 7 days a week. Many of them agree and 
request an hours notice or some time frame. When working with an agent this is easy, there is a lock box and you will not be home. Hence another good reason to work with an agent.
If you are not working with an agent then are you prepared to greet strangers and show them around your home during these same hours? Do you know how to qualify a buyer? Do you think a person viewing your home with an agent is as comfortable dealing with you as they would another agent? If the buyer also does not have an agent do you understand all the details you will need to provide and the paperwork you will need to fill out to properly sell your home? These are all good reasons to work with an agent.
Summary
If you remember these three Ps of pricing, preparation and presentation, you will certainly increase your odds of selling your home with or without an agent. It is not impossible to sell your home on your own. In fact if you want to find out more please contact me and I will gladly fill you in on all the details. However, in this day and age there are a few things to consider as you are contemplating the sale of your home:
- Do you have all the information you need to properly price your home?
- Do you know who that person is knocking on your door wanting to preview your home?
- Do you know the process to avoid litigation and tax concerns?
If you answered no to any of these three questions, please make the call to an agent who is wiling to guide you through the process of selling your home. Please realize that if you speak to an agent you are not making any committment. All the agents I work with have one thing in common: they want to help. If you decide to sell on your own we will support your decision. We may not agree or like it but we alsoi want to be there in case you should change your mind.
Hopefully you will become one of my clients. As a client of mine you will realize that: Your Success is My Focus
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