Is a Quick Home Sale Always the Right Sale?

Is a Quick Sale Always the Right Sale?

When you are in a hot seller’s market, word gets around fast. The talk of your city or community is how fast homes are selling and how much money they are selling for. And when it’s a very hot seller’s market, everything is accelerated, homes selling in a weekend with multiple offers, over asking price offers, and buyers offering sellers more incentives than a regular market. It’s definitely the right time to sell but is it the right time to sell within a weekend, or is there a more substantial offer possible out there? Although hot seller’s markets produce great results for people, not all homes experience fast, quick sales at the top of the market; a good percentage actually don’t. People will focus on the one or two that sold quickly and for significant money.

Still, most of the data circulated through the neighborhood are often incorrect because it comes from conversations. I can’t tell you how many times I will be in a listing appointment or working on a listing, and during a conversation with a neighbor, the locate home sales prices in the neighborhood people talk about are way exaggerated. The time a property is sold is usually not accurate either. Believe it or not, this type of information starts to drive sellers’ decisions and distracts them from their plans. Don’t fall for the heard thoughts; stay focused on your investment plans. I believe that it creates problems; remember the last bubble from 2004-2006, a lot of the market was driven by the heard hype, mainly hurting the buyers, the market voice was you need to buy a home at this moment, and buyers could not buy fast enough.

There are some things to consider when you list your home in a very hot seller’s market, a couple of rules I recommend to follow when planning the seller’s strategic plan. First, I see sellers think their home is going to sell fast and think it is better to hire a discount agent over a seasoned professional agent. I understand how they could think this way because the market voice tells them a story the buyer will buy regardless of any factors.

Let me start with a question, do you think your house will sell for a fixed price, meaning your house will sell at $300,000.00 and only $300,000.00, or will it sell in a price range of $300,000.00 to potentially $325,000.00? I can answer that every house sells in a price range regardless of what type of market we are in. When I pull comps ( comparable sales) in the neighborhood or area, the same house has rarely sold for the same price. There always is a price range of sales prices. So, the question is, why is that? It can be easy to assume that all real estate brokerages and real estate agents are all the same. The fact is we’re all different, very different, from marketing plans, massive exposure reach of your home, sales skills, negotiating skills, and experience knowledge. The fact is discount brokerages or real estate agents do not offer anything to the seller but photos and putting their home on the MLS; that is it. Suppose the home will sell in a price range. In that case, you still want an experienced real estate agent and a powerhouse brokerage to list and market your home with the attention it deserves to ensure you sell at the top of the market and leave no possible additional money on it the table. Never lose sight; this is people’s most significant investment; 87% of Americans will use their home as part of their retirement.

The other rule is to create a plan before you do anything; after you interviewed and hired the best real estate agent for you, have an idea of some of the basic things when selling. Things like how much do I owe on my house, how much do I want to net, do I need or want to do any upgrades. Upgrades could be items like new paint inside or outside, new carpets, new fixtures, or new appliances; any of these items could help with the sale price.

Talk with your real estate agent before you do anything; a professional real estate agent will know what to improve for maximum value and not to address because you would be wasting your money. I always talk about two values, appraised value, and buyers’ value; they are both very different but can net you more money if done correctly. Working with your real estate agent, create your home selling plan, and then bring it to market. The critical factor is not letting friends, family, or coworkers convince you that if your house is not sold on a weekend, there is something wrong with your home or your real estate agent.

When I list a house, one of my main plans is to start working on getting the maximum exposure of the property; I want the world to see the house. That does not happen overnight. With this strategy, I need some time to get to work and get my seeds I plant time to grow. This plan ensures I sell a property at the top of the market and I know once sold, we did not leave any money on the table.

Hot seller’s markets are great for sellers but make sure you don’t let the voices in the market convince you you should have your house sold in the first weekend.