One of the biggest concerns for real estate agents today is how to sell their listed homes quicker, and for more money than the listing price. While we are certain that there are many real-life instances of that mythical “immediate sell way above list price, no matter what shape the house is in” story that you see ad nauseum on HGTV, we’ve come up with this more practical list of real estate sales tips to quickly sell the homes in your inventory for top dollar!
- Make sure the home is appropriately priced. A good rule of thumb to remember is this: figure out the value of the home (by getting an objective appraisal), and then deduct about 25% from that price. For example, if the home is appraised for $1,000,000, list it for $750,000. This will then provoke a bidding war…which will drive the price at, or above, the home’s value.
- Storage is something that every homeowner wants…and most complain that they don’t get enough of it. So, in order to make the home look like it has more storage than one can imagine, encourage the homeowner to declutter everything. Go through kitchen cabinets, pantries, linen closets, and bedroom closets, and take out at least half of everything in there. Then, neatly organize whatever is left over in the closets or pantries. This will nearly double the storage space…or, at least, give the appearance of doubling the storage space.
- One of the first rules of sales — no matter your industry — is to know, and to understand, your competition. That is to say, make sure you hunt down other open houses in the area, and see for yourself what other homes in the area look like…and what they’re selling for, and why. For example, are you seeing a lot of wood floors in the homes in the area? Is extra money being spent on premium tile types, such as travertine? Are all of the rooms up-to-date? What is the color scheme that’s most common in homes in the area?
- Light is a home’s best friend — so, on a day that you’re showing the home, make sure that you turn all the lights in the house on. (Of course, you’ll have to turn them off right before you leave!) This will let the potential home buyer see the home at its absolute brightest, which will make it more appealing. And of course, it goes without saying that you shouldn’t show a home at night.
- Ironically, what makes a house a home is the very thing that should be taken out of the house before it’s listed. Remember: a potential home buyer should be able to see himself/herself living in the house…and s/he can’t do that if there’s pictures, memorabilia, and other personal items in the home. Before you show the home, encourage the home owner to pack up everything of a personal nature…in other words, anything that makes a house look like a home. In addition, if there are any “crazy” colors in any room of the house — bold colors, such as red, orange, or yellow — encourage the home owner to paint over the colors with a more neutral palette (such as colors in the beige, brown, and white families). Finally, but certainly no less importantly, it goes without saying that the home should be thoroughly cleaned & scrubbed down before a showing — nothing will turn a potential home buyer away faster than a filthy house!
- If there’s room in the budget to do so — and it’s a practical investment for the home owner/home seller — hire a professional home staging company, and housekeeper, to keep the home looking its best in between showings.
