Milk, Paratroopers & Selling your home...Leave it to me to tie all that together!

You, as the seller, control the two most important aspects of selling your home, price and listing percentage—let’s call them tools in your tool box. Stating the obvious--price is the most important. If the home is over-priced, no amount of marketing will sell the home. But you say, "Skip, you just don't understand! Our home is just better than most other homes..." You can't imagine the percentage of people who try to tell me that their home is worth more than their neighbors because of this or that--not realizing their thoughts are because they are emotionally attached to the home and aren't based on fact. Harsh, but true..
Example: milk is for sale at ABC Mart for $2.99 a gallon, but across the street XYZ Mart has "premium" or "brand name" milk for sale for $9.99 a gallon...where are you going to buy your milk? You would say at ABC Mart! I ask you why?
Because it costs less for the same thing!
But what if XYZ mart gets huge banners that say "premium MILK $9.99 a gallon", or if they get paratroopers to jump out of ariplanes holding banners saying "premium MILK $9.99 a gallon"...now where are you going to get your milk?
You would say ABC Mart, because it costs less!
Yep, I agree.
Think of price this way...your sales price is what locks in the buyer on your home vs. your competitor's home.
Now let's go to your other tool in your tool box...Percentage! This tool is what will lock in the Real Estate agents, or push them away. Listen. Will an agent show a home that has a low co-broke? Yes, but put on your Realtor cap...their enthusiasm level may be a bit low. So, if you are going to spend the money, go ahead and get the most bang for your buck. If the homes in your area are listing for 6% and co-broking for 3%, then do the same or maybe just a little better say 7%, with a 3.5% co-broke. Be sure to insist that the agent offer 50%! After all, they are "spending" your money--make it work for YOU for what it is intended--to bring a buyer!
Remember you will always have the strongest response from your listing when it is first placed up for sale, so go on the market strong--price aggressively and offer a strong commission. Your "price reduction" later on will have much less effect after the home shows it has been on the market for a few months. Buyers will wonder what is wrong with the home that it didn't sell. A new listing is much more appealing as fresh goods!  Something to keep in mind!

Happy Selling...

Grace & Peace

http://www.skipgeiser.com/

SkipGeiser@live.com

(850)221-6442 

Pools...Cool Dive? Or Are They All Wet?

As a father of five children living in Florida, I would side with the crowd that says pools are great.  Now, the Realtor in me may say something different.  When I am asked to value a home that has an inground pool (not an above ground), I am usually faced with a problem.  What is the pool worth?   I have a good rule of thumb...take what the total cost of the pool was, and cut it in half.  Ouch!  Let's just say for example you have $35,000 invested in the pool--that means you get a whopping $17,500!  That's almost as bad as buying a new car and driving it off the lot!  We could make it even more complicated by screening it in, but let's don't and say we did. 

A large part of the time, you can find homes that have sold in the last six months, within half a mile, that have a pool to use as a comparable to base your value on. (Do this to see what your home value is BEFORE you have a new pool installed!  Then make your decision.)  I consider myself pretty frugal (my wife and kids would probably use the word cheap).  None-the-less, who out there would like to throw away $17,500?  I will tell you right now--NOT ME!  So how can we solve this problem?  Trade up--buy a home that already has a pool, and let the guy who had the pool installed take the hit, just like the guy who gets the privilege of driving that new car off the lot!  Happy Selling...

Grace and Peace...

http://www.skipgeiser.com/

SkipGeiser@live.com

(850)221-6442  

   

Welcome to the dark side?

Here I go again, I am going to ask you to put your imagination cap on and just hang on for the ride.  You are a seller who has listed his house with ABC real estate brokerage and you chose Mr. Average agent to work with to list your most prized possession...your home.  Now the contract was for six months, and you have come to that dreadful day.  Your contract just EXPIRED.  Ouch! 

Your phone rings.  You answer, and find that Skip is on the phone and would like to talk to you about why you think your home has hit the expired list, and how he can help you get your home from expired to SOLD!  You agree to meet and find yourself setting across the table from Skip that afternoon.  Skip finds a few key mistakes that Mr. Average agent has made and says let's just start at the beginning "what is the first place buyer will see your home?"  You say, "Well on the internet I guess."  Correct!  Looking at the photo Mr. Average took, you notice something troubling it's dark and cloudy.  What a first impression...ouch!  Here is what you see...

                   Not   

Which home would you want to see? 

As Skip continues, he tells you that you only have a split second to catch the eye of the buyers when they are looking at a long list of homes.  A poor front photo could be the difference between a selling contract or six more months of home payments.  If you were looking through a list of homes where you see just a front photo, does it put your home's best foot forward?  You want the buyers to call their agent and set up a showing for your home, not this one...

Sadly, though, for the past six months that is just what has been happening.  You say, "Now, Skip, couldn't there be other factors that caused their home to not get any showings?"  YES!  I would say price or location could have been a factor, but let's face the facts...if the buyers can't get past the front photo, you're going to have a hard time getting to the closing table--and really, wasn't that the goal in the first place? 

Happy Selling.

Let me know what you think!

Grace And Peace....

www.Skip Geiser.com

SkipGeiser@live.com

(850)221-6442

Rules of Real Estate....Prison yard rules or Boxing match?

Well...I think there are rules, but sometimes I think they may be prison yard rules!

   Close your eyes and try to picture with me--you're a seller in a dark alley battling with the buyers, each grappling to get the upper hand by slipping this or that in the contract, changing a date here or there, or moving this fee over, all attempting to get their bottom line figure.

    As I sit with a seller going over their listing agreement, I find myself saying things like, "This is how it is 'usually;' this is 'fair closing costs'."  But depending on how the other agent structures their offer, I would be able to say you can expect to net this amount.  Not but a few days later, I find myself sitting in front of the same sellers going over an offer that has come in, saying again there is no "usual" offer.  What do I mean? 

Lets say you list your home for $100,000.  A great question for me from my client is, "How much am I going to walk away from the closing table with?"  Well here I go again, it will depend how the other agent structures the offer...who is paying for what?  If the seller pays for all the charges related to getting the home out of his name and into the buyers name, and the buyers pay for all the related charges associated with the mortgage; then this is about as close as I can get to "fair" closing costs. 

This by no means says that the buyer MUST pay for a certain fee or inspection, they can and sometimes do give you a lower offer than you wanted, and then ask for you to pay closing costs that are NORMALLY associated with their mortgage.

What can you do to be assured you get the amount you wanted when you get to the closing table despite the confusing mumbo jumbo of who is supposed to pay what?  Well, what I recommend is getting a Preliminary HUD from the closing office that is going to perform the closing.  This will give you the closest number to match what you will be receiving at the closing table.

    Now close your eyes and picture with me a boxing ring with buyers in this corner in the red trunks and sellers in this corner in the blue trunks.  Both come out of their corners, but there is also a third guy out there to make sure there is no hitting below the belt and no cheating.  This is where I come in...

The buyer wants to get their dream home for the best and fairest price possible, and the seller wants to get the most out of their largest assets as they can.  We, as Realtors, stand up and make sure there is no "hitting below the belt".  Is that to say we never make a bad call...well no, does a ref make a bad call now and again?  I still believe that the buyers and sellers are better off having representation in this market, just as I believe boxers are better off having a ref in the ring with them.

Grace and Peace...

http://www.skipgeiser.com/

SkipGeiser@live.com 

850-221-6442        

I Hate Real Estate Agents....Are You Sure?

A large portion of the clients I deal with, that have had their home expire, think all Realtors are the same.  I usually lead off with a quick question after that.  "Have you ever eaten at McDonalds?"  "Well...yes." is usually their reply, "Why do you ask?"  Have you ever been less than pleased with some of your service or food during one of your trips there?  Usually the answer is answered with the rolling eyed..."YES!"  Have you eaten at a McDonalds since the less-than-pleasing experience?  "Well, yes" is the answer.  WHY?  I would think you would say, "I hate McDonalds!"  Listen, most of the stores are owned by different people or companies, and are run by different managers and staffed by different employees trained by different people.  This results in some good experiences and some not as good.  Ok, Skip, what in the world does this have to do with why I hate Realtors?  Every Realtor is not created equally--we all work differently.  Some of us are full time (no other jobs on the side) some are part time, some don't work in the evenings or on the weekends, some work 24/7, some are not up on technology, some love the next best thing, some Realtors love helping people, some have the love of money.  All of these factors will result in a totally different experience.  Trust me when I say there are huge differences in the agents you use.

Why all the fuss about one agent over another?  Your home is usually your largest assest...that is why all the fuss!  I hold dear the fact that you in trust me with your largest, or one of your largest, assets; and I take it seriously as all great agents do.  I also take a large amount of pride in my profession...yes, I said it.  I do take this as a profession.  I also do know that not every agent does, so remember...choose wisely.  We're not all the same....Happy selling.

Grace and Peace....

http://www.skipgeiser.com/

SkipGeiser@live.com

850-221-6442

Local Business Spotlight.....Southern Mill and Supply

Here we are at Friday, and another great local Pensacola business spotlight...Southern Mill and Supply.  To get to this local spot, you will need to leave the downtown Pensacola's city lights in the rear view mirror and trade them in for some good old-fashioned wide open spaces.  As you pull into the parking lot, you will notice some chairs out front and a long, shady porch to greet your arrival--sit down a spell, take a load off...you're welcome here.

As you enter, you find a warm country atmosphere; and behind the counter, you'll find Lester (store owner) friendly and ready to help.  You say, "Time out, Skip.  Wait, I could run to a big box store."  Yes, yes you could, but it doesn't matter if you were talking horses, pigs, rabbits, chickens, gardening, or how hot or cold the weather is...here you'll glean knowledge.  As you circle the parking lot at the big box store, I think we can all admit knowledge is not what we are getting!  Listen, take it from me--it's worth the drive...go see Lester and stroll the isles of Southern Mill and Supply, tell them Skip Sent ya!

Phone: 850-587-3179

E-mail: southernmill@fontier.com






Grace and Peace...

Really, who is this guy who wants to "Give his house away"?

When the sellers' market is great, I seem to hear, "I'm not going to give my house away".  When the market is leaning over toward a buyers' market, I seem to hear "I'm not going to give my house away!"   I realize you may have an amount you were "told" that your next door neighbor sold his house for, or you went to an automated home valuation site,  or you have an appraisal from 6 years ago but there is an old saying that goes something like this, "Something is only worth what someone will pay for it."  "A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore." Yogi Berra   Let's face it--if you count the cost of holding on to it, does it outweigh the amount your losing off the asking price? 
Let's just say you have your house for sale for $100,000.  Your payment is $800 a month, plus add in the utilities--now you would be out about $850 a month until you get a contract and are sitting at the closing table.  Now let's say you get a $90,000 offer and you say, "I'm not going to give my house away!"  Well then, let's just ask this question--at $850 dollars a month how long will it be before you spend the $10,000 you were refusing to "give away"?  Looks to me to be about a year.  Some homes, especially those that are priced at the high end of the price range (the sellers who are trying to get "top dollar" for their home--and are the ones who often say "I'm not going to give my house away.") are sitting on the market for a really long time--often more than a year.

So now, consider-- is the market going up or down?  Now let's just say you go a few more months and you get a second offer for $85,000.  How good does that first offer look now? 

Look, I realize there are some people who are at the bottom of their price and/or owe more than it is worth, but that is not who we are talking about here.  I am also not encourging sellers to leave money on the table, but you really need to use strong SOLD comparable homes that sold with in the last six months to get the value of your home--after all, that is what the appraisers will use.  If you look at the numbers, you may find it would be a better deal in the long run to take the "bird in the hand rather than waiting for the two in the bush" because you still have to pay all the expenses associated with keeping the home up and in proper showing condition--which reduces your bottom line anyway along with extended frustration.  I know...harsh reality.  Just something to think about....

Grace and Peace....