How to Attract Buyer in Todays Real Estate Market!

The Real Estate market is incredible at this time! Prices are flattening out, inventory is beginning to shrink for a number of reasons (sold, removed for the holidays, winter doldrums and some people have realized they are not competitively priced). These factors plus the buyer incentives (Tax Credits), make this a great time to market your home. But be careful! There are a number of factors that you need to be aware of as a seller.

First and foremost is the price. In the past, the sellers were able to over price a house and eventually the market would catch up to the price and a transaction would fall into place. That has changed and when sellers don’t realize this it will cost them money! So the first rule is to 'Price the Home on the Cutting Edge of the Market’. Your home must be the standard bearer of the price range. Every house must compare unfavorably to yours, so when a buyer looks at other houses they feel that yours is the best deal for them. Pricing your house in this manner will bring you the highest possible price in the shortest time, with the least hassle. Accurate Pricing is first the step in attracting qualified buyers.

Here are some other key ingredients to make a successful transaction!
1. Clean up the joint. No one wants to walk into a cluttered mess. Yes you have to live in your house while you are marketing it, but don’t let the house get away from you. (You know that is when the buyers will want to come) and you are forced to say no or worse to go crazy trying to do a quick clean to impress only to have the buyer spent 10 minutes in the house and leave. So stay on top of things, think dress for success!
2. Make the outside look great! You only one chance to make a first impression! Doors should latch and unlock easily. If there is paint needed, do it! Kid’s toys put away. Garden hoses rolled up! A nice WELCOME MAT in place. A place for the buyers to wipe their shoes, in case of inclement weather a place to easily remove shoes or booties to protect your carpets. (if floors are slippery avoid booties)
3. Make the kitchens and baths shine! These are the most expensive areas of your house. Make them look that way. Even an older bath can sparkle.
4. Basements should be organized so the buyer and eventually the home inspector can get a good look. This also make the home seem bigger and user friendly.
5. Have all the mechanicals serviced. Boilers should run quietly and clean. This helps in the inspection and can save lots of money and aggravation at the point of sale.
6. Do some inspections prior to the sale! This tip will save you money! Have an inspector come in and do a radon test in air and water, have heating contractor check out the system, have septic pumped and inspected and if the roof is questionable have a contractor available to give a quote. All these actions will help you to negotiate a selling price from the side of strength. Knowing that these big ticket items are addressed and would come to bite you after the inspections. Buyers will demand these items to be repaired, and you can comfortably provide the results to them, thus removing them from the table. If the house needs any repairs you can build them into the original price and not have to deal with the unknown in the middle of a transaction.
7. Hire a professional that will work for you and protect your interests in the transaction. This agent should be well versed in today’s financing, work closely with attorneys, inspectors and appraisers. They should be full time and have a strong office staff. The agent should also be well versed with the property so they are able to provide information to prospective buyers and buyer agents.

I hope these tips will assist you in the marketing of your homes. Please give me a call and we can discuss these items further, plus prepare marketing plans that will fit your needs. I can be reached at 203 586-9167, or at my office Century 21 Home Services Scalzo 203 -264-1400 xt 2003. For more information about me please go to; www.jeffcoltsellsconnecticut.com .