This question was recently posed by a potential Seller:

I’ve had my Spring Hill Home for Sale for the past six months, and it’s just not selling - is it the market? is it my realtor? is it my house? what can I do?  I need to get this home sold NOW!                 

Well - to answer this question bluntly - it’s probably a combination of the market, your realtor, your house, and you.  Let me elaborate:

The Market

• The market is a condition that you cannot change.

The market dictates the rules of this game, and if you choose to ignore the rules, you end up in the proverbial penalty box.  Let me rephrase - If you want to sell your house in ANY market, you must know the rules, play by them, and accept that you need to play the game whether you want to or not.

The game is in motion from the moment you say “I want to sell my house”.

• If you choose not to play, you will lose.
• If you choose to ignore the rules, you will lose.

…and when I say “lose” i don’t mean it metaphorically…I mean “you will lose money”.

If you don’t know the rules for this game, you need a Realtor who can help to guide you (preferably not just “any” realtor…but a Great Realtor!).

• The market is bigger than you, your house, me, and the person who eventually buys your home.
• The market is determined by everyone who is NOT directly involved in your transaction.
• The market is a statistic.
• The market is based on what buyers (in general) are paying for houses on any given day.

Know the market - play by the rules - win the game.

Just so you are aware..the winner is the one who sells and nets the most money at the end of the game…That’s who you want to be…The winner.

Your Realtor

Choose your Realtor wisely!

The decision to use one Realtor over another should not be based solely on whether they’re your neighbor, or whether they’re your friend (unless of course you like losing money…because the wrong Realtor will absolutely cost you money).  Put time into choosing your agent.  Ask them questions.  Let them teach you!Your Realtor has several positions to play throughout this game.

• They’re your guide - they know the rules (hopefully) like the back of their hand because they play every day, and they can help you avoid the pitfalls that are just waiting to cost you money.
• They are your real estate marketing professional.  They will handle all the marketing for your property - making sure that potential buyers can’t help but trip over your property several times during their search.
• They are an expert negotiator - this has many aspects, but the most valuable to me have been a keen ability to read people, see what’s between the lines, and find the true motivations of each side.
• Your Realtor needs - and I repeat this again…NEEDS to be able to help you determine fair market value for your home (and you NEED to listen to them and abide by it!)  This is one of the rules of the game… “You Must Not Be Over Priced”.  If you are over priced, you will lose (i.e. you will not sell your home to a ready, willing, and able buyer) and some other seller will win.

You must remember, there are only two outcomes when you put your home on the market…

1. It sells.
2. It doesn’t.

Contrary to popular belief, it is 100% within your control to decide which of those two outcomes you will reach, how quickly you will reach it, and how much money will be in your pocket when you do.

Your House

To steal a quote from the US Army - you must help your home to “be all it can be”.

This means taking care of all the “to-do-list” items throughout your home.

• Have the carpets cleaned or replaced.
• Have the interior painted.
• Maybe replace a couple of those old light fixtures.
• Make it “White Glove Clean”.
• Windows, Door Handles, Floors, Countertops….everything in sight must be clean and ready to show!

You want your home to be the one a buyer walks into and says “wow…this is ready for me”.

When they say “this is ready for me” it means they’re going to put in an offer and buy it.  You want that.

IT IS IN YOUR CONTROL!

Make it happen.

The small investment you make in sprucing up your home properly will pay off TREMENDOUSLY when yours sells in 1 month and all of your competition sits on the market dropping their price by $5,000 every 30 days (which in reality costs quite a bit more when you figure mortgage interest, utilities, maintenance, and all the other holding costs that you no longer have once you sell your property!).

You

• You must be willing to play the game.
• You must do your homework.

SPEND THE TIME to find a Great Realtor!  They will more than pay for themselves and more importantly…a “less than great” Realtor will cost you a lot of money…so take some time and find a great one!

• Once you find a great Realtor - LISTEN TO THEM!

They will explain the rules to you.  They will tell you exactly what needs to be done in order to sell your home.

Note:  Please understand, you might not like everything you hear at first…but whether you like it or not doesn’t matter.

Remember - you only have two possible outcomes.

1. You sell.
2. You don’t sell.

If you choose not to listen to your Realtor, you either:

1. Don’t want to sell or
2. Need to find a different Realtor that inspires more confidence in their ability to help you play the game.

I run into the following scenario fairly often in my conversations with sellers…the seller hires the Realtor, and then argues with the Realtor about what needs to happen in order for the home to sell.  By taking your time and interviewing several, you should feel confident that the Realtor you choose to represent you in the sale of your home knows what they’re doing, and is going to do the absolute best job for you.  If you don’t trust your Realtor, you didn’t do enough homework when choosing to hire them, and you should re-address that issue as soon as you realize it exists.

It is 100% your choice.

• You choose the Realtor.
• You choose whether or not to listen to them.
• You choose whether or not your home sells.

Choose wisely…

Please Visit My Website for More Information About Spring Hill Homes for Sale!