Advice on Selling Hard to Move Properties | Landscaping

By HalJames
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Word Count: 438

At the beginning of this decade, you could sell your home without even putting it in MLS. My, how things have changed. Now you practically have to beg a buyer to make an offer. If your property isn't generating interest, what can you do?

There is no doubting the current real estate market is tough to sell in. It may even seem hopeless in your area. It is not hopeless. You can sell. In fact, we just sold our home. The key is to be persisten and take unique approaches.

The first thing you learn when getting into real estate is the location rule. The nature of your neighborhood is critical. The better, the better your chances of selling. Play up the attributes of it in your marketing material.

When selling your neighborhood, you also have to account for the problem areas. You know, that one neighbor. A simple strategy is to offer to pay for their landscaping and so on. You'll recover the money on the sale of your home.

Step back from your pricing. Look around the neighborhood. Are there comparable homes listed for less, even a few thousand dollars less? If so, you need to cut your price. You don't need to beat the fixer upper on the block, just those similar to your home.

Ah, but my home is better than the comparables because I have marble counters or something else. Yes, but most buyers will not care. Why? What does every new homeowner do? They fix stuff up! Your slight advantages don't matter to them.

What if you just can't bear to lower the price? Are you out of luck? Not necessarily. If there is some definite reason you should be priced higher than comparable homes, then it is okay. You absolutely must emphasize this in your marketing material, however.

If your price isn't low, you can try to make up for it with favorable terms for your buyers. Specifically, offer to help them by carrying a second note on the property or providing some other nugget that will make them bite on the property.

The last step you can take is to make improvements to your home. There can often be a fatal flaw you might not notice since you live at the home. Ask friends to give the home the once over as though they were looking to buy the property. See what they say.

Besides landscaping, there are other minor tasks that can have a big impact. Clean your driveway and organize the garage. Cut back plants in front of windows to maximize lighting and views. Walk the house and just make little changes to the details.

About the Author

Hal James writes about issues faced by FSBO sellers for FSBOAmerica.org, where you can get a free one month listing to sell your home by owner and get more real estate tips.

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