Christmas in February

January 30th, 2007 categories: Homes For Sale, Real Estate, Real Estate Tips, Seller

Sellers, I have to take a moment and address what I’ve have been seeing lately on MLS (the Multiple Listing Service).

Since MLS feeds into Realtor.com along with many Internet newspapers and IDX solutions out there in Cyberspace, it is very important that we each take the time to make sure that the houses we have for sale are advertised to the best extent possible.

Since homes are taking longer to sell, it would appear, as evidenced by the photo to the left that it is NECESSARY and prudent of listing Realtors to re-take photos of their current homes for sale.

Sellers you need to take a look at what your house photos look like on the web. And while youre at it, Sellers ask your Realtor to see a copy of what the Realtor wrote about your house on MLS. There are some dandies out there!

There is nothing worse than seeing Christmas in February! This does not help sell a house.

One of the first questions that typically a home buyer has is, “how long has this house been on the market?” In this case, the home buyer really doesn’t need to ask…it’s somewhat obvious that it’s been on the market at least since December.

Price is paramount if the house is going sell, the photos, the description of the house certainly help play a roll in this scenario along with proper staging. I often get emails from Sellers asking me why their home hasn’t sold when listed with another Realtor.

Many times, it’s not from lack on the Realtor’s part to inform the Seller of a valid selling price (notice I did not say listing price) usually the Seller’s say, that their Realtor did tell them to list at a lower price. The common denominator is usually, the Seller stating something like this…”home buyers are giving $20,000 less so I need to price mine $20,000 higher so that I can get my price.”

Not, such a great idea…that cuts down on the number of showings and we all know that the more showings a Seller has, the more likelihood an offer.

You can’t negotiate without an offer! Recently, when checking a listing for a seller who called me, I found spelling mistakes in the listing description as well as “upgraded carpet” as the key item that would bring attention to this listing and make a home buyer want to buy this house.

It is crucial, I feel that we take the time to check our spelling and think of what is important about the house that will sell the house. Since there is limited space given on the MLS, choices need to be made that will enhance and lend itself to give the home buyer a good idea of what the house has to offer that is essential to what they are looking for.

What about the floor-plan…is there a bedroom downstairs for an office or nanny or guest?
How young is the roof?
Are there top of the line appliances and fixtures?
Has the house been kept up-to-date on a yearly maintenance schedule?

We only have a few short clicks to pique a home buyer’s interest…take great photos, retake photos, describe the house from a home buyer’s perspective, check spelling and price correctly…are musts in this Real Estate market if you want to sell!

Have you checked and asked to see what your Realtor wrote about your house and taken a look at the photos, lately?

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 30th, 2007 at 12:19 pm and is filed under Homes For Sale, Real Estate, Real Estate Tips, Seller. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.