Chitownproperty

Gone are the days when you can expect to sell your home fast for top dollar. Whether it’s the effect of rising interest rates, overpriced housing markets, or high local inventory, sellers need to alter their strategy to get the highest market value out of their homes in a reasonable amount of time. The American Homeowners Foundation offers this advice via the Sun-Times:

• Face up to the new reality – Buyers realize they have the leverage right now, and sellers have to face the fact that they can no longer expect to squeeze top dollar out of their sale. Sellers need to understand that if they don’t price their home competitively, buyer’s don’t have any reason to look at their home because there are likely three others for sale for less in the same neighborhood.
• Price competitively according to the very latest sales – Sellers should base their asking price on the most recent sales data available. Even comparable sales from three or four months ago may be unrealistic today.
• List in the MLS – Whether you go with a full-service or discount broker, make sure your home is listed in the MLS to reach the widest possible audience. The MLS feeds many other real estate websites, including sites for the major brokers and Realtor.com, the largest listing of homes for sale on the web.
• Offer incentives – We don’t mean silly, eye-catching perks like throwing in a new car, but tangible, cost-saving incentives to sweeten the deal for a potential buyer. Even if your house is in great shape, consider offering a decorating allowance to help the buyer defray furnishing expenses. Offer to pay for some closing costs, or pay down the buyer’s mortgage rate for a short amount of time. Also, whether you use a full-commission listing broker or not, you should strongly consider offering a commission to the buyer’s agent. They have to make a living too, and whether they do it consciously or not, will always be more enthusiastic about showing their clients a home that offers a commission.
• Put your best face forward – As always, your home has to look good to stand out. Make sure your finishes in important rooms like the kitchen and the bathroom are up to your market’s standards. If you can’t or don’t want to pay for remodeling, expect to have to lower your asking price to accommodate. Again, you want to give the buyer every reason to choose your home over a neighbor’s.