I Keep Telling My Realtor "SELL MY HOME - PLEASE!"
The real estate market in Richmond VA in 2012 continues to be a challenge – with some rays of sunshine starting to peek through! But for a lot of sellers it is a very frustrating time! Sellers today seem to be the most frustrated party in the transaction – many wonder why they are not getting more showings on their home! All they want their Realtor to do is “SELL MY HOME PLEASE!” And, as your Realtor, my goal is to help you get your home sold!
Someone once gave me a formula that they use to see just how the market was doing! So today, I went ahead and took a look –
v In the City of Richmond – in the last 30 days there were 227 new listings and in the same period there were 183 homes which went under contract!
v In Henrico County – in the last 30 days there were 279 new listings and in the same period there were 293 homes which went under contract!
v In Chesterfield County-in the last 30 days there were 399 new listings and in the same period there were 390 homes which went under contract!
v In Hanover County-in the last 30 days there were 117 new listings and in the same period there were 107 homes which went under contract!
As you can see, there are homes coming on the market, but the buyers are definitely out there looking – and buying! So, as a seller, you are really shooting yourself in the foot by not doing everything you can to get showings on your home! And there are really only 4 things a seller must do to get showings in today’s market:
ü Price: With so many homes on the market, you need to make sure you are priced with the market – and the market today will include distressed sales (short sales & foreclosures)! Think about it – if there are even just a few distressed sales on the market in your area but they are priced under the marketplace, don’t you think that a buyer is going to consider those homes along with yours, especially if it is priced under your home? If you are priced way above the distressed sales, you may not get a lot of showings!
ü Repairs: When I looked at today’s MLS information, it was amazing to me that as of noon today, there were 19 sellers who took price reductions in one area – and 13 of these price reductions were for $5,000 or more, and most were closer to the $10,000 price reduction! So if you are not getting showings, and the feedback from the agents who have shown your home is that there are things that need to be taken care of – why not try to get these things done before you list the home so you won’t have to take price reductions once you are listed! Even foreclosure lenders are doing things like painting, new appliances, new carpet!
ü Cleanliness: It really does go without saying that your home should be priced well & show well, but it should also be clean! Buyers are going to be turned off by a house that has a musty smell to it, dirty dishes in the sink, dirty clothes under the bed, grimy bathtubs & toilets! If you are not living in the house, why not pay a cleaning service to come in weekly and spruce up the house! It will be well worth the money!
ü Small Touches: Finally, if your home is priced well, doesn’t have any repair issues a buyer needs to deal with, is *** & span clean, then why not put in some of those small touches that help a buyer feel like this can be their home! Even a vacant home can have small touches added – towels in the bathrooms & kitchen, maybe some rugs, maybe some books on the bookcase – little things like that can go a long way to making a buyer feel like this can be their home!
Selling a home can be frustrating sometimes for the sellers, but all homes will sell! Listen to your Realtor – they are there to help you with the sale of your home!
Thinking that this is the year you may want to make a move? Want to find out what you can do now to ready your home for sale? Why not give me a call and I would be happy to stop by to see just how you can make your home show ready! Or if you have a question, don’t hesitate to email me at BReagan2@gmail.com or call me at 804-869-1191! Have a great day!
