subject: 4 Steps Most Home Sellers Do Not Use When Marketing Their House [print this page] I overheard a woman talking at the table next to mine at a caf last week. Of course I wasn't eavesdropping, actually I was just sitting there eating, but her comments were hard to ignore and that's why I'm sharing them with you. Being a homeowner, she kept saying, "I absolutely need to sell my home quickly. Can you do that?" She was talking to other woman who must have been a real estate agent. The agent was trying to remain calm and answer the question honestly. But the homeowner was getting more and more agitated.
Personally, I wanted to lean over and say, "How much are you asking for it? I'm a real estate investor and I buy houses for a living." But I just sat there and quietly ate my salad, which turned out for the best because Ms. Homeowner finally got huffy, got up and said she was leaving since she wasn't hearing the agent say anything she wanted to hear. I felt sorry for the agent, she was very embarrassed. But although I could sympathize with her, I also understood what was really going on in the mind of the homeowner.
No real estate agent can guarantee a seller that a house will sell at a certain price. I know that some real estate firms advertise that they promise to buy a house if it doesn't sell within a certain time frame, but I also know there are escape clauses for that promise, and I know they are not promising to pay the listing price. Our Ms. Homeowner was looking for a definite guarantee, and nobody can give her a guarantee like that. She wants something that doesn't exist.
Whenever I decide to sell a home quickly I look around, maybe even in the mirror, and admit that it's my own responsibility. To sell quickly a homeowner will need to spend time and concentrated attention on the job. Listing with an agent won't change the situation, but it means there are two people doing the job, not just one. Don't forget - it's really your job to sell your home.
If you've never needed to sell a home quickly before then these suggestions are for you:
1. Give some hard thought to who might want to live in your neighborhood.
2. Talk to your neighbors and ask if they know anyone who might want to live nearby.
3. Question local business owners about their employees who might need a home in the area.
4. Consider talking to hairdressers, they know who is going to be moving before the real estate agents know it because they hear everybody talking!
First you have to find a buyer, and finding that buyer is really the homeowner's job; it's the most crucial job that needs to be done immediately.
