Finding out if Home Selling Tactics Work to Secure the Most Money
Home Selling tactics when the most money is your goal.
So you think you’ve conjured up the perfect strategy to sell your home to cinch the most money. You’ll utilize a few of the commonly referred to home selling tactics that homeowners nationwide attempt to employ when it comes time to sell a home. Perfect…you think. Yet, is it really the best way to achieve your end goal of being able to beef up your bank account?
When selling a home it’s important to use a strategy that indeed works. Know the facts of selling a home.
So what are the tactics employed to corral the most money? Do they work? … let’s find out.
Price my home higher to leave room to negotiate
Did you know that a vast majority of homeowners believe that this is the way to sell a home? – the best tactic.
Let’s take a look at Rebecca and Brad who were ready to list their home for sale. They knew they wanted to sell their home for $825,000 so they decided that it’s best to pad the price a little bit to give them a little cushion. They’ll add another $30,000 onto $825,000 and list their home on the market, day one, at $855,000. They assumed all Buyers try to lowball a home Seller, so this way, they’ll be one step ahead of any prospective home Buyer they both think. They’re so astute!
How did this play out for Rebecca and Brad? Well, weeks passed and no bites on their home. They were forced to reduce their home’s price by week four, but they still wanted to keep some wiggle room. They dropped the price to $838,000 and by six weeks on the market, with no interested Buyers they reduced to the $825,000 – which should have been the initial list price. And they finally sold their home for $818,000.
How does this strategy fail?
You want the most money for your home, right? Pricing your home higher than its true value, means you can miss out on being seen by the well-qualified home Buyer within your home’s true price range. Buyers who are looking at homes priced at $825,000 won’t even see your home priced $30,000 above its true value, because they’re approved to buy a home for $825,000 and are viewing homes priced up to $825,000.
And, Buyers who are qualified to buy a home at $855,000 are going to be interested in homes listed for sale that are larger and have more desired upgrades than your home, priced to leave room for negotiation. Why would they pay $855,000 for your home when they could buy a home for $855,000 that has more square footage, and updated Kitchen, plus other updates?
The last resulting effect of this strategy is that after a home is on the market for so long, it can often taint your home’s image. Buyers wonder why your home was on the market for so long and will want to pay less for your home.
If a home is selling in a Seller’s market, a home priced right can also incite a selling frenzy when interested Buyers will often offer a home Seller more for their home so they don’t lose the home when inventory is low and Buyer’s are competing tooth and nail when homes come new to the market. Even when not a Seller’s market, a well priced home sells, compared to a home that is priced too high
Not divulging all that is known about my home
Oh, this is a good tactic, you think. Just hide that little defect as nobody needs to know about it. What can it hurt?
As a single dad, Duke needed every last penny to care for himself and his two young children. Times were tough as a dad caring for his children. He was taking a new career opportunity that was out of state and had to sell his home for the most money. The mold and termite issues he discovered last month will just be his little secret. Oh he felt bad in not revealing, but how much can it really hurt?
Unfortunately, putting this strategy into action with the first Buyer, Duke found out the hard way what the Buyer thought of the surprise find.
How does this strategy fail?
Is not divulging, a little white lie or a full fledge lie? Keeping defects from any prospective Buyer that can affect your home’s value will likely be revealed upon the Buyer’s home inspection anyway, which is then just ammunition for a price reduction request. Don’t give a Buyer the chance to further reduce the price that they’ll pay for your home. Believe me…Buyer’s love to request all kinds of credits and price reductions after a home inspection. And the reduction they request is seemingly always more than what it could have been had they had knowledge of the defect prior to presenting their offer. This way, you’ll know and they’ll know the list price reflects the known defects – allowing you to save more money than waiting for an inspection discovery that will end up costing you more.
Let’s say the home inspector didn’t catch the termites and the Buyer goes ahead and purchases your home only to later discover termites. They won’t be happy and if it shows that they’ve been there a long time, the Buyers may feel you hid it from them. Do you think they’d have any problem in contacting an Attorney to see their recourse? You don’t want to mess with that horror, I’m sure. This strategy will net you less money. Confess up, ahead of time.
Laws can vary by state, yet typically you need to disclose anything about your home that will affect it’s value.
Not a strategy that’s ever recommended. It’s always important to divulge all that you know about your have even if you think it means you’ll receive less for the sale of your home.
Pay the Real Estate Agent a lower commission
Brilliant you think! Real Estate Agents don’t really do too much do they? Why not get a Real Estate Agent who will sell a home for less money. Oh, yes….this will work good too.
Now that they’re in retirement, the kids have all moved out with families of their own while Robert and Patricia decide it’s time to downsize. Plus, living on a fixed income certainly makes them keenly aware of how they spend their money and they really need to sell their home; what better reason to offer the Real Estate Agent they hire a reduced commission. They’ll just hold firmly and insist. That’ll work. They’re sure the Real Estate Agent will understand and easily accept any reduction that they ask for regarding the commission to be paid.
Robert and Patricia discovered what happens when they hired one of the five Real Estate Agents interviewed who accepted their request to sell their home for a reduced commission.
How does this strategy fail?
Ever hear of you pay for what you get? How easy was it for Robert and Patricia to get the Real Estate Agent to reduce his/her commission? Easy? If so, how easy will it be for a Buyer to get your Real Estate Agent to get you to reduce the price of the home you’re selling? Can you see it now? Your Real Estate Agent will say, “Sure, Robert and Patricia really need to sell their home, so I’m sure they’ll accept less money”. What? Why is your Real Estate Agent revealing such private information about your need to sell your home? This is definitely a no-no when trying to corral the most money for a home.
How hard is this Real Estate Agent going to work for you when they know they’re working for a reduced pay. I learned at a very young age that you get what you pay for and the same holds true when you hire a Real Estate Agent on a budget. Don’t expect them to work their tail off for you. They will be pulling punches however for their recent customer, Enzo, who is paying a full commission. I imagine it might be a bit harder for you to get ahold of your Real Estate Agent too, as he/she is likely tied up with Enzo.
So if you don’t have your Real Estate Agent gung-ho about selling your home, do you really think they’re trying to get you top dollar? Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Another consideration is regarding other Real Estate Agents whom may be representing prospective Buyers when your own Real Estate Agent is not. For example, the Buyer’s Real Estate Agent finds 3 homes for the Buyer to see (3 the magical number it takes for Buyer’s to find and choose from, as home buying TV Shows swear by, right?! If only it were that easy.) If two of the homes are paying the typical full commission, and your home is nestled in amongst the others, yet your home has a glaring red sign that tells the Real Estate Agent that they’d make less money selling your home. Do they really want to show their Buyer your home? Oh but wait…that’s unethical you think for the Real Estate Agent to consider not showing the Buyer your home. Sure it is, but don’t think for a moment that this scenario doesn’t play out or what if the the Real Estate Agent is struggling financially and needs money desperately to care for their ill child? Desperation leads people to do desperate things. Would you really want to test this?
Sell my home by myself
I can do this! How hard can it be to sell a home? I’ll just put a sign in the front yard and the Buyers will come. Oh, and I’ll advertise on the FSBO (For Sale By Owner) site. There will be lines up the driveway, I’m sure! And, a BIG “And”…I won’t have to pay that gosh awful Real Estate commission at all. Love the idea of selling a home by myself! I can do this.
This is exactly what Ivy and Matthew had
thought – both successful business people having careers of their own that affords them the luxury lifestyle. However, Matthew, feels that with his intellect and vast business experience that he’ll be able to take care of selling their home. They want to build their own custom dream home that they’ve always dreamed of and can now afford.
Sometimes it’s the smartest people that think they’re fully capable of selling a home themselves. Like mentioned above, plop a sign in the yard and they will come.
Overwhelmed with all the needed know-how to sell a home, Ivy and Matthew, discovered a whole new appreciation for Real Estate Agents.
How does this strategy fail?
Are you a Real Estate expert? No matter the homeowner’s intellect, selling homes requires certain traits, skill sets and experience to have success at selling homes. Homeowners who are not skilled as a Real Estate Agent, will not have the ability to sell their home for the most money for a number of reasons.
They don’t know the ins and outs of the local market, what Buyers look for in a home, how their home compares to recently sold homes, how would adjustments be made when comparing their home to a nearby sold neighbor’s home, would they be able to recoup 100% of the recent remodeled rooms, how do they price their home for sale setting aside their emotional attachment, how do you write a Real Estate contract and do they understand all the terms, what should they be looking for in a Buyer’s offer, can the Buyer afford their home and how would they know … I could go on and on.
Historically, homes sold by owners who are not skilled, licensed Real Estate Agents will have a hard time achieving the end goal of selling their home for the most money. It’s just a fact.
Waiting to time the market
There’s too much uncertainty with the Real Estate market right now with the elections front and center, not knowing what the new President’s policies will reveal and their effect. Let’s do a wait and see. Or maybe we’ll just wait until the upcoming season when home’s typically sell better. They do right…sell better in the season that’s fast approaching? Yes, that’s what we’ll do. We’ll wait.
Alex and Emily were going to be planning to start a family and understand that they’re going to need the additional space, plus they were hoping to find something closer to the beach as they really are beach lovers. You really can’t blame them as the south Florida beaches are gorgeous!
It was a tough pill to swallow, when Alex and Emily discovered what happens when they waited to sell a home; they were kicking themselves as home prices in their neighborhood had declined over the months that they were waiting to figure out when they’d sell. Would they recommend this to others? Absolutely not, Emily repeatedly told anyone who would listen.
How does this strategy fail?
Gambling can be risky. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. Trying to time the market could put you in a rough spot should something happen while you’re waiting for possibly better days, the bottom could drop out, so to speak. Will things get better? Will things become worse? Will you corral more money if you wait to time it just right? When is that next week, next month, next year…when?
Why wait to see what happens? It’s best to make the decision to sell when it’s right for you. When it’s in your plans and you know how it will affect you and your financial well being, then go forward with your plans, don’t wait just to see if something better happens. If everything seems to be lined up right, then go forward. Sell your home.
In a Nutshell
Now that we’ve carefully gone over these 5 tactics, I’m confident that you’re likely having a clearer understanding of what it takes to corral the most money for the home you want to sell.
Know that:
- Pricing a home is critical
- Revealing all you know about your home is a must
- You pay for what you get
- Do you really want to venture into the unknown of selling a home by yourself
- And lastly, timing most anything in life never seems to work out.
With this in mind, be sure to carefully choose the Realtor to sell your home. You’ll be glad you did.
Please consider sharing my Real Estate article that will help anyone selling a home. Thank you!
More helpful reading if you’re selling a home – the more you know, the better equipped you are to sell a home:
Some of the Best Secrets to Selling a Home by HGTV
Over Pricing A Home by Kevin Vitali
Tips to Sell a Home by US News/Money
Prevent Home Selling Mistakes by Wendy Weir
Today’s Real Estate article “5 Tactics to Corral the Most Money when Selling a Home – Do They Work?” was written by Lynn Pineda. You’ll find Lynn selling homes in Southeast Florida in the cities of Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Coral Springs, Delray Beach, Coconut Creek, Deerfield Beach, Margate, Parkland, Pompano Beach, Tamarac, Sunrise, Plantation and Ft Lauderdale areas within Broward and Palm Beach counties. Call Lynn at 954-464-1100 if you have questions about selling a home and want to know more about home selling tactics.
Lynn Pineda, a licensed Southeast Florida Real Estate Agent serving Southeast Florida for over 11 years. Keller Williams Coral Springs Realty. Real Estate Promises Delivered. You can speak with Lynn by calling/texting her at 954-464-1100 or you can email her at: LynnP@ImagineYourHouse.com if you need to buy or sell a Southeast Florida home. Your local, trusted professional when it’s time to buy or sell a home. Real Estate promises delivered.
