A for sale sign in your yard is not a marketing plan
Even in today’s market, getting a home sold takes work, expertise, and experience.
To be honest, a for sale sign in your yard will get your home sold in this market. Any agent who can fog a mirror will be able to sell your home in this market. However, you may not get the best possible price and terms, and may face some liability after the sale is complete. An experienced agent will get you the best possible price, a smooth transaction, and limit any potential liability from the sale in the future.
Marketing Drives Competition
Even though installing a for sale in the yard is going to get the home sold, a comprehensive marketing plan that is focused on the traditional disciplines of product, placement, and price ensures maximum exposure and drives competition. It is that competition that will result in the highest possible net return.
An experienced agent is going to help you prepare your home to look it’s best and attract the most buyers. A thorough marketing plan should still include multiple marketing channels specifically targeted to the right buyers. Pricing a property in a hot market is just as critical as any other market, and over pricing can still negatively impact your final net return.
Highest May Not Be Best
Once those offers start rolling in, an experienced agent is going to save time and frustration by helping to select the buyer who can actually complete the purchase and result in the highest possible net return. In this competitive market, buyers are using all kinds of tools to make their offer stronger….or appear to be stronger.
An experienced agent will help you read between the lines, verify information, and share insights that less experienced agents just do not have. It’s important to consider things like the experience and reputation of the buyer’s lender and agent, and whether the buyer can realistically execute the terms of their too good to be true offer.
Limit Liability
In this hot market things are moving at a fast pace and buyers are making some pretty rash decisions. As a seller it’s easy to get caught up in that, and some important disclosures may be overlooked. Once the dust settles a buyer may feel like they overpaid or may have some remorse about accepting some flaws they were OK with in the heat of competition.
In our litigious society, it is really important to have someone on your side who is keeping an eye out for future problems during the sale. An experienced agent is going to make sure disclosures are thorough, all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed. They will make sure everything is documented. They will also be around a month, a year, or five years after closing to help you through any complaints or claims that may arise.
Patience Is A Virtue
My goal is always to get my clients the highest price in the shortest amount of time, but there are times when a little patience pays off. In this market, there is almost always a pretty solid offer that comes in right away even when the owners have clearly communicated they want to wait for a certain date to review offers. It’s tempting to go with that great offer.
An experienced agent will tell you in a market like this, that buyer is making a strong offer with a short expiration because they do not want to compete with other buyers. Just about 95% of the time, there will be a better offer. Even though that buyer with the strong offer said take the offer now or forget it, about 95% of the time they will still want their offer considered when the seller reviews offers.
Patience can also pay off in this market when a buyer wants to renegotiate price after the inspection or a low appraisal. An experienced agent will often recommend letting that buyer go and starting over with another buyer. I’ve had two very recent experiences where that strategy has resulted in much smoother transactions and more importantly, higher net returns for my clients.
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