Go To Market

When you are selling your home, you have look at it as a commodity and not as the place where you may have raised your family. One of the first things you need to know is "How to Market a Property."

Realtors will show up for the Listing Presentation and lay out their great marketing strategy which usually involves having other agents come through your home to preview it, making up a glossy flyer for you and submitting your home to the Mulitple Listing Service (MLS).  It usually ends with them crossing their fingers and putting a sign in your front yard. But this is really just the beginning. 

Bar none, getting your home into the local Multiple Listing Service is the primary lead generator for drawing quality buyers to your home. So the question becomes how can you entice quality buyers to come out and take a look at your home and then fall in love when they arrive? It comes down to marketing your property to sell quckly and for top dollar. 

How to Market a Property

It's difficult to separate the emotions you may have invested in your home with the true equity you may have in your home. Review the Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) we've prepared for you and objectively compare your home's features and location with the competition.  As much as you might like your house to be "worth" more -- its true value is whatever the market will support at this point in time.

You have three basic legs supporting the value of your home and all of them affect the marketability of your house:

1. Condition & Features - This relates to the age of your home, the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, granite or laminate countertops, condition and type of flooring, number of garage spaces, square footage, landscaping, outdoor living space, land, pool and more. You get the idea.
2. Location - Either you have it or you don't.  Are you on a highway or nestled in a cul-de-sac.  Do you have a view or are you surrounded by homes looking into your backyard.  Are you within walking distance of the elementary school or a twenty minute bus ride away?  If you have a brilliant location - Flaunt it! It definitely adds value to your home.
3. Price - Price is a function of condition and location.  Since you can't really improve your home's location, you must do everything in your power to influence the condition if you want to receive your selling price.

How do you increase the condition of your home?

• Treat it like a car when preparing to sell. You must "detail" every nook and cranny of your home. It must shine! Every smudge and dust bunny has the potential to lower the value of your home.
• Let the light in.  Light makes things brighter and appear more spacious. People are attracted to light-filled homes.
• Stage it! You are now living in your "product" and you need to treat it like one:
  • Start packing your personal items away
  • Treat your home like a "Model Home" and pare down your furnishings
  • Get rid of mismatched bed coverings, towels and window treatments
  • Make your bed and do your dishes before you leave every single morning
  • The more rigorous you are at keeping your home in tip-top condition, the more quickly you will sell
  • Set up "vignettes" throughout your home to entice buyers into envisioning what life could be like living in your house.  Buyers are purchasing a home and a lifestyle. Help them see the lifestyle they can have in your home. 
    • If you have a chair in your bedroom, place a throw on the arm and an open book on a serving tray with an empty tea cup.  Buyers will envision themselves sitting in the cozy chair, reading a good book enjoying a cup of tea. 
    • Place a chess or checker board in the family room so they can imagine sitting on the couch interacting with the family. 
    • Large bowls of fruit or the makings for a great dinner (non-perishable) on the kitchen counter bring a home to life. 
    • In the photo above, they have placed a tray on the bed with a bottle of wine and glasses...a romantic evening for two.
    • If your home has access to recreational facilities, put a pair of tennis rackets and a can of tennis balls on a bench by the front door or in one of the guest rooms to remind them of this valuable amenity. 

I cannot stress enough how important it is to understand how to market a property - your property - your most valuable financial asset, so you can walk away with top dollar. This part of the marketing stategy lies in your hands and can make the difference between a quick sale at market price or a slow, painful delay in getting your home sold. 

We will gladly provide Staging advice at the time of listing.  We trained with Barb Schwarz (the creator of the Home Staging movement) and received the designation of Accredited Staging Professional in 2005. We've also put together a short video with our 5 Top Tips for Staging Your Home for Sale.

See also :: How to Set the Right Price and It Pays to Price it Right!