Karen Libin, KL Realty
We all hear what a hot housing market Boulder County is and, for that matter, the entire Front Range. In such markets, home sellers often think their house – no matter the location, condition or price – should sell quickly. And if it doesn’t, their Realtor must be doing something wrong. In most cases, the opposite is true.
When you work with a Realtor, you’re not just hiring someone to show your home to potential buyers and handle the paperwork for the sale. You’re hiring a professional with years of local experience who can guide you to make smart choices to best sell your property: from pricing, to contract and through closing. Therefore you should listen to your Realtor! Specifically:
Present your home as suggested
We don’t see our homes the same way potential buyers do. Cherished items just look like clutter; a “lived in” feel seems like worn down. Let your Realtor be a fresh eye on your property and offer advice for how to best present your home. This may include de-cluttering, rearranging furniture, cleaning, fixing items, painting, adding newer décor pieces, or landscape work. Professionally staging homes for sale has become much more prevalent in today’s market. This might seem like an exorbitant investment, but if it pays back in a higher sales price, it’s well worth it.
Price your home correctly
It’s easy in the current marketplace to think you should try to get “as much as you can” for a property. Start high and if no one bites, lower your price – right? In reality, this strategy often backfires. Properties that are on the market too long are often seen by potential buyers as “stale” or “passed over by everyone else.” In short, it becomes a rejected property, which buyers think they should “get a deal on.”
Your Realtor should provide you with a Broker Price Opinion (BPO) that takes into account numerous factors to determine a proper selling price point. If you stray higher than this recommendation, accept that your house will probably sit on the market, then you’ll need to lower the price to generate interest.
Accept that some homes take longer to sell
You think your home that hugs a steep hill 45 minutes from Boulder is fabulous, but most people won’t. Even if your home is priced correctly, you may have to wait for those special buyers to come along, and sometimes this takes time. There are many interesting and odd homes in Boulder County, and they aren’t most people’s cup of tea. Homes with funky floor plans or those in need of much repair also deter the majority of buyers. Additionally, homes at higher price points usually take longer to sell as there simply aren’t as many buyers in these upper brackets.
Trust the marketing plan
Often sellers whose houses are not seeing much activity via showings demand more of some type of marketing effort. But, again, here is where you need to trust the expertise of your Realtor. Your property has probably been well photographed, is on the web, and has been featured in direct mail and advertising. Anyone who would possibly be interested in your property has had ample opportunity to become aware
of it.
Trust your Realtor and have patience – which we all know is in rather short supply when selling one’s property – but often is what’s needed the most!
By Karen Libin, K.L. Realty. Karen is the owner and managing broker of KL Realty, and has more than 29 years of experience in the Boulder County real estate market. Contact Karen at KL Realty, call 303.444.3177, e-mail [email protected] or visit klrealty.net.
