Looking back over the last several years, we seemed to have been in this perpetual cycle of ‘the economy is improving’…no wait… ‘things are bad’ …wait… ‘they’re going to improve’ …but… ‘prices are going to come down by x%’ …and then… ‘the market out-performed expectations for that quarter’. And around and around we went and to some extent, continue to go.
Nothing is ever sold in a vacuum. Well, I suppose potentially there could be a truckload of Miele vacuums stuffed with some contraband but you get the point. Regardless of year, market or location, homes are bought and sold in the context of where they are, who is buying them, who is selling and how the big, bad world is feeling at the time.
The one denominator that we find gets left out of the mix or consideration is the human element. Take that factor out of the equation and this whole business would get a lot less complicated. Product A gets sold to Buyer B for Price C. Piece of cake. That just isn’t the way it works though.
So, for this year, one of our suggestions and what we will continue to emphasize with our clients is to always factor in where that person (or prospective person) on the other side of the table is coming from. Is the market saturated with options? Is the general climate extremely price sensitive? How many buyers are out there? Is the product (home) ready for market and in its most sellable condition?
And the big, million-dollar, must-do, important question is this:
If I were buying this property, what would I think given the physical condition, market atmosphere, pricing, location and competition?
You could even go so far as to physically get up and sit on the other side of the dining room table. Be the seller and have your spouse or friend or family member be the buyer. Have them ask the difficult questions. What about that home down the street that is 28,000 cheaper? What about that 42 year old furnace and the broken tiles in the kitchen? How are you going to handle the issues that a 90 year old home can potentially bring to a successful sale?
It is tough to do but imperative. Ask yourself the “what if I was the buyer” questions. Success in selling will be found in the answers. (now, say that in your best Yoda voice!) And there are answers to all of the above.
If you need help with the questions and answers, contact us anytime!
If we can help, contact us anytime.
THEbTEAM
Thank-you to OJse Aljovin for the photo.