Ten Brutal Pieces of Free Advice for New Home Sellers
Ten Brutal Pieces of Free Advice to New Home Sellers
I’m no realtor, but I’ve bought and sold more than 20 properties from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, so I have learned a little bit about what to expect, especially when selling a home. If you’ve just put your house on the market and it’s your first time, this might help you! (And, yes, this IS a detour from my usual content of southern psychological horror.)
Realty Remembrances:
1. Your realtor is your representative in everything that goes on in the sale of the house, so if that realtor does something illegal, dishonest, or unloyal, then you have every right to fire the helminthic worm.
2. Your realtor is human, and most of them are great human beings. They are very conscious of their presence in the community; everything they do makes a statement about their business! The one realtor that I remember less-than-fondly to this day is one that did not disclose a pre-existing negative situation as we looked at, contracted for, and bought a house. We discovered later that she was a friend of the seller. To this day, she is a blight upon humanity in my world. Choose a realtor who has a pronounced presence in your community; that’s probably a very conscientious realtor.
3. You will receive unexpected calls from your realtor who will want you to allow every last-minute showing request despite your having just gotten out of the shower. This is natural. The realtor wants to sell the house for you as quickly as possible, and every person who legitimately looks at your home is a potential buyer. HOWEVER, if you will suffer emotionally or physically from dropping everything and going against your own instincts, then say NO. It’s okay. You must remember that it will mean losing a potential buyer, but you will have to weigh that option and judge for yourself. To prepare for this situation, try to simplify your life and conduct most of the messy household activities (cooking, showering, washing the dog, etc.) during hours in which no sane person would want to look at a house, like before 9 AM and after 6 PM, and make sure that you have the house in “show” condition during show hours. Make it so that you don’t have to turn down a showing.
4. Once you have the sign in the yard and the listing on the internet, you can expect many show requests over the first three weeks. The first day might be slow as the realtors get the word, but after that, your realtor will be calling frequently over those first weeks. You’ll always have the option to say no to a show, but it’s in your best interest to say yes. Sometimes, you’ll have only an hour’s notice, but it’s in your best interest to do everything possible to make that show happen. If you say no to a potential buyer, then that buyer will look at and potentially buy another home, not yours. Within the first three weeks, most of the potential homebuyers will have seen it, and the ones that follow are the ones that trickle into the market, little by little, so try to make the most of the power-packed first three weeks and say yes to ALL of the shows if humanly possible, even if you haven’t taken out the garbage or the cat litter isn’t pristinely clean.
5. It is in your own best interest to make your home attractive to non-smokers and pet-allergic buyers, but if you don’t want non-smokers or pet-allergic folks to buy your home, go ahead and smoke all you want and allow your animals free reign. It’s your choice to cut your own throat or not. You KNOW that there are buyers out there who have health issues with whatever is floating about in your home, so you must accept the fact that if you do not cater to that sector of the population, then you can potentially lengthen the amount of time that it takes to sell your house. It’s in your best interest to present your home as pristine as possible to every buyer, so remember to keep a vigilant eye on the Tootsie rolls in the cat box, dog hair on the sofa, and every odor and aroma that wafts through your house. If you instantly say, “It’s my house, and I’ll do what I want,” then you’re unconsciously depriving yourself of an earlier sale, so you need to rethink your mindset. Even smokers and pet owners don’t want to look at a house that is stinky or dirty.
6. Realtors other than your own might want to contact you directly to show your home, and this is NOT okay in most areas. Unless you and your realtor have discussed this potential about another specific realtor, you don’t have to let that realtor in your home. Your home is your sanctuary, and you need to make damn sure that every realtor is cleared through your own. Don’t do ANYTHING related to your real estate without discussing it with your realtor.
7. Potential home buyers are registered with their realtors, so you will have a record of who is walking through your home. If someone says that they are interested in your house and they want to look inside without going through a realtor and having a set appointment time, SAY NO. Do you know how many stalkers and serial killers there are on this planet? SERIOUSLY.
8. Buyers want to look at homes that look as if they belong in décor magazines. If you have a lot of clutter, piles, and hoards, then they will remember the house in terms of your chaos. If the kitchen counters are stained, chipped, and dirty, that’s what they will remember about the kitchen. If your entertainment room holds dirty furniture, dusty bookshelves, sprawling technical wires, or crumpled blankets, they will remember that level of squalor. If the closets are packed to capacity, they will remember that there is not enough closet space to accommodate their belongings or yours. Clean up and glow up your house.
9. Wall art needs to be artfully chosen and placed. Look at your walls. If your walls are overladen with art and photos, then you need to pare things down a lot. Keep in mind that “less is more” with wall art. You need to present the room as magazine-ready, and no décor magazine is going to proudly present photos of a room with too many disjointed, dusty pictures on the wall. Be brutal when you pare things down. It will be less of a chore to dust, and buyers will be able to see the ROOM instead of the framed distractions.
10. Curb appeal is a real thing. As the buyers and their realtor approach your home, what do they see? If they see a front door with dirty peeling paint, a tattered welcome mat, weeds in the overgrown hedges, and molded siding, they get a negative impression, so get all the painting, power-washing, and landscaping done before you put the sign in the yard.
There are so many things to keep in mind that it might seem overwhelming, but, trust me, it is WORTH IT to make the effort to conform to what buyers expect. The first three-week crunch can be harrowing, but the amount of energy that you put into it can mean the sale of your home!
All the best in selling of your home!
When I started selling real estate, in 1976, sellers were not asked to make their property unlivable while it was on the market! Things have changed, yes! Thanks for your accurate and astute seller perspective.