Optimize Your Sales Price
Optimize Your Sales Price
Doing a lot of work to a car before you trade or sell it to a dealer is not generally a good idea. In most cases, you won’t recapture the cost of the repairs. They can do the repairs for a less than you can. Not to mention, you are selling to a wholesaler who needs to sell it again to the end user and still make a profit.
A home sale is totally different. The owner is selling the home to an end user. Since the buyer, in many cases, is using their available funds for the down payment and purchase costs, they don’t have money to spend on repairs or decorating the home. They would need to live in it “as is” for a while which may not be as appealing as finding a home that is refurbished, up-to-date, and ready to move into.
Even if the buyer would be willing to get a home improvement loan after the sale, it would be a separate loan at a higher interest rate making their payment higher than financing it all in one mortgage at the lower first mortgage rates.
The seller may experience some inconvenience going through the remodeling process, but it will, most likely, result in a higher sales price in less time. Occasionally, sellers say they’ll let the buyer choose their own colors but not all people have the imagination to know what something will look like after it is finished. It is better to go ahead and get the work done before putting it on the market.
The bathrooms and kitchen are the most important rooms to update. If the finish on the cabinets is bad, have them painted. New countertops and appliances can make a world of difference. Paint, countertops, and fixtures in the bath give the home a great feel.
In addition to the repairs, a major cleaning and decluttering can make a home look and feel better than the competition.
The first step is to go through the home and pack up or get rid of things you don’t need or things that detract from the home like excess furniture, exercise equipment, personal artwork, etc. Now, do the same with the closets and cabinets. By getting rid of things, there will be more room and they’ll look larger.
Next, walk across the street from your house and give it a critical look. How is the drive-up appeal? Would you want to go inside to see the rest if you were a buyer? Are the trees and shrubs trimmed? Yard cleaned up? Do you have blooming flowers in the beds? Does the front door and mailbox need a new coat of paint? Do you need to power wash the outside of the home and the sidewalks and driveway? Do the windows need washing?
Buyers are visual people and beauty is always rewarded. Restaurants know that people eat with their eyes first and they go to a lot of effort to plate the food so it is visually appealing. The same approach works for selling a home. Ask your agent if they have ever taken a buyer to a home that refused to go inside because they didn’t like the looks from the street.
Your real estate professional can make specific recommendations and assist you in finding someone to do the work. This is what we do. TRUST US.
If you would like any professional residential Real Estate advice, contact us at Paramount Real Estate Services. 1008 12th St. SE Salem, OR 97302 503-851-1645
Also, to mobilize us right away to help you move, visit us here:
The Art of Negotiation
Do you like to negotiate?
Whether you like to or not, buying and selling a home involves negotiation at all stages of the process. It is not like the retail world where once you decide to purchase, you pay the price. It is easily the most expensive purchase or sale that most people experience and emotions get involved that could affect the negotiations adversely.
The word “home” by itself conjures up emotions and selling a home you’ve lived in for a while could even complicate things more. A real estate professional can separate their emotions from the process to be able to help the one they are representing.
The price of the home, the type of financing and concessions, closing costs, personal property, closing dates and possession are just a few of the many things that can be negotiated in a contract. Since the seller wants to get the most for their house and the buyer wants to pay the least, their objectives are diametrically opposed.
Even after the contract is signed, removing the contingencies can cause considerable negotiations. The appraisal, the inspections or the repairs could be a source of reevaluating the terms and provisions of the contract.
Negotiating the sale or purchase of a home is a competition; for one person to get something, someone has to give something up. If you don’t feel comfortable with this, it is important to work with an agent who can bring their skills to the table on your behalf. As your advocate, they can champion your position.
I’d like to share how my skills, training and experience can benefit you in a sale or purchase.
If you would like any professional residential Real Estate advice, contact us at Paramount Real Estate Services. 1008 12th St. SE Salem, OR 97302 503-851-1645
Also, to mobilize us right away to help you move, visit us here:
Amid more sales, the average Home Sales Price still declining! What does this mean?
Although the number of home sales keeps increasing each month. The average home sales price continues to decrease month to month. The average sales price in January 2012 was $187,000. February shows the average stepping down to $181,000. Although there are positive signs in our economy, our housing market continues to slide. We do believe that we could very easily be on the cusp of a different direction, the fact of the matter is that there are just too many factors that are unknown that could sway the future of our market. We do believe most of the damage has been done, however; our economy is not based solely on the United States. We are in a world economy, so the events happening across the globe will affect our housing industry. Unfortunately these are items that we can not control. One event that we do have a little control over is our election results. Being an election year, it will be interesting to see how the voters respond to the candidates. The current administration will no doubtedly be inflating the positive results of the economy to influence voters. One fact is that there is a lot of cash sitting on the sidelines waiting to be injected into this economy once corporations and investors feel confident in our leadership. This confidence can change each day as we inch closer and closer to November.