Mistake #1

OK, so you have made the decision to move ... or maybe you have to move for work, and you need to get your home sold quickly. Knowing no one in the business, you go with the gal your uncle recommended because she seems like a nice person and she agrees with you that your home is worth more than the one around the corner that sold for less. A week goes by with no offers. Then two. In fact, there are not only no offers; there are no requests for showings.

Now what? Well, the sad truth is that your home is about to settle to the bottom of the pond.

Buying a Listing

Real estate is a very competitive business, and in the push to get a new listing, some agents will tell sellers what they want to hear to get a signature on the bottom line. In the industry, it's called "buying" a listing. The agent knows it won't sell for the listed price. But he or she also suspects they might not get the listing if they argue for market price, so they tell you (the seller) what they think you want to hear. And once they secure the listing, you can bet they'll start trying to talk you down. This does a lot of damage for a newly listed home, and eventually causes the home to be sold sometimes for less than it would have fetched if it were priced correctly.

You Deserve More than the 3-Ps

Moreover, agents who know a property won't sell at an unrealistic price are not apt to spend a lot of extra money advertising it. So you get the 3-Ps advertising package: Put it on the MLS, Put a sign in the yard, and Pray it sells.

When selling a home, you should consider interviewing at least two or three agents. In addition to discussing comparable sales in your neighborhood, ask them how they intend to market the home and what their company sales have been like in your area over the past year. A good marketing plan should be staged (and even pre-marketed if the circumstances allow for this). If a home is priced right and the market is decent, it will get showings in the first few weeks it is on the market. If there are no offers in the 1st month or two, the second wave of advertising should include additional print and online ads as well as campaigns aimed at your relator's contact database (ask them about this; they should have one.)

Open Houses Do Not Sell Homes

As much as buyers love open houses; they don't sell homes. They largely serve as an opportunity for realtors to collect new clients and neighbors to look inside your home. The vast majority of home buyers are looking these days on the internet. So choose a realtor whose company has a strong online presence and who can demonstrate to you how they intend to reach online buyers with targeted advertising of "your" home.

And when it comes to the "other" 3-Ps, don't forget to Pre-pack, Put away as many personal items as possible, and, if possible, Paint with white or neutral beige tones to give your home that fresh feel a new buyer is looking for! All things being equal in terms of presentation, marketing and MLS exposure, the next most important factor in selling your home quickly is price.

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