The Top Ten Things a Real Estate Agent Wishes Their Sellers Knew

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The Top Ten Things a Real Estate Agent Wishes Their Sellers Knew

NUMBER 10


Your neighbor’s opinion on your price, marketing, etc. just really doesn’t matte

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unless they have sold your home in the last six months. Most people don’t sell a home on a regular basis. The real estate market is never stagnant – things are changing constantly. If your neighbor sold his house more than six months ago, we can guarantee that things have changed. Again, listen to the professional doing this every day, not an armchair agent.


NUMBER 9


You can hire a “flat fee” agent and save the commission, but will more than likely end up paying more in the long run

. You more than likely won’t get the highest price that you could for your home, you won’t receive full service (things like answering those contract questions). Forget about marketing, especially marketing about your neighborhood. Flyers? Dream on. You want your flat fee agent to track down an agent for feedback? Sorry, they have about 100 other houses that they are listing and that’s just not part of their service. Negotiating the inspection to benefit you? No real time to do that. Vendors? You want some suggestions for repair vendors? Hmmm…try the internet.

NUMBER 8


Please don’t make it harder to sell your house by limiting showing times/days, etc.

Don’t shoot yourself in the foot by saying that you will only allow showings on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays between 9-10, 4-5, and when the sun is shining. Buyers block time out to look at homes. They don’t care if you don’t want to show your house. They will just skip it thinking you don’t really care if you sell or not. They will not come back to meet your showing requirements.

NUMBER 7


If we say that something is going to be challenge with your home, we mean it

. We don’t like being the bearer of bad news so why would we take the time to tell you the info if we didn’t mean it? Yes, it’s great that you have no house behind you, but most buyers will not like the sound of the train tracks right behind your home. There is a home for everyone, but if you have an “issue” with your house, it may take longer to sell. Listen to the professional’s opinion and don’t argue about it with them.

NUMBER 6


Pricing a house “high” to test the market is just a bad idea

.
You are sending a signal out to typically pretty educated buyers that you are greedy and think your house is all that. They think you won’t come down in price and you may be difficult to work with if inspection items are needed, etc. Price it right from get go and get it sold.

NUMBER 5


Staging. Yes, it is important.

Yes, you will feel like you can’t live in your home. Yes, you will say that you don’t understand why anyone would buy a house when it doesn’t have two couches and two chairs in the family room. Yes, that makes more functional sense to you. However, none of that matters. It’s what the house looks like to the buyer. Not you.

NUMBER 4


Please don’t call us five minutes after someone has looked at your house to find out what they are thinking.

Put yourself in those buyers’ shoes. They more than likely are still looking at houses after yours. One minute your house is the one for them and then the next morning they have picked it apart and think it’s a dump. Let the buyers simmer on it and then see if their agent can tell your agent anything at all the next day. If a buyer is hot to buy your home right after they see it, trust us. The agent will be calling your agent immediately.

NUMBER 3


If you are hiring a real estate professional, we assume that you trust our opinion.

We do this every day. We should be able to give you a realistic selling price for your home. By trying to convince us as to why your orange wallpaper in the basement is an added “retro” benefit, you are showing us that you just don’t trust our opinion.

NUMBER 2


Open Houses. AKA Letting in complete strangers into your home

to check out your decorations, your floorplan, who you are, etc. but have no intention of buying your home. Agents do Open Houses all of the time and will tell you that they have been oh so successful with them. Yes, they are great in getting the agent more business, but not in selling your home. Open Houses now occur on the internet. If a buyer is interested in buying a home, they have more than likely scoured the internet for photos and if your house interests them, they will set up a private showing. They won’t hope and pray for an Open House.

NUMBER 1


Your agent really does want to sell your home.

. An agent doesn’t make a dime until the house is sold so for no other reason than needing to pay their own bills, they want to sell your house.
Karen & Company Realty is one of the top real estate leaders in Douglas County, CO. Ranked the #1 Real Estate Agent in Parker, Colorado in 2013, 2014 & 2015 and the #1 Real Estate Agent in Stonegate Village for over 9 years! Should you have a need for assistance with either buying or selling in the area, we'd love to help! Please give us a call at 303-798-2290 or email us at [email protected].

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