Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 4, 1990 TAG: 9003052391
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Los Angeles Times and Cox News Service
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Select a good real estate agent. Interview at least three prospective agents that are active in your area and pick the one that seems to be the most professional and knowledgeable about your neighborhood.
Make sure that your property is priced right. Ask your agent for a list showing the recent sales prices of homes in your area, and set your price accordingly.
Be flexible when it comes to showing your property. With buyers calling the shots in today's market, you have to play by their rules. If a buyer wants to drop by in the evening or early morning, try to accommodate the request. It may be days or even weeks before someone else is interested in the property, and you can't sell it if nobody sees it.
Keep your home tidy. That means no dirty dishes in the sink, no papers on the floor and no fingerprints or smudges on the doors. Keep the yard well-manicured, consider painting the house and make those little repairs that you've been putting off - like fixing that leaky faucet or mending that torn screen.
Be realistic when it comes to negotiating. Unlike a year ago, buyers are driving a hard bargain and you'll be expected to dicker. But if your property is priced appropriately, you probably won't have to knock more than 5 percent off your asking price. Depending on how desperate you are to sell, consider offering to finance or participate in financing at a below-market interest rate, leasing the house with an option to buy, renting the house or putting it up for auction.
Remember, too, that reducing your price is only one way to make concessions. You can also agree to a closing escrow date that meets the seller's needs.
If your house has been on the market for several months, take it off for two or three months until there is a new round of buyers who won't regard it as a shopworn listing.
If you have your eye on a new home, see whether the builder is willing to take your home as a trade-in. Some in slow markets will take trade of homes that have non-escalating, assumable mortgages if the price is far enough below market value.
by CNB