Comments on: How to Sell a House in a Down Market

By: SmartHippo

SmartHippo — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 13:01:38 +0000

Yes, it’s still possible to sell your house these days.

There are still lots of first time buyers out there but they now have the bigger them of the bat for these reasons:

- People who couldn’t afford to buy a first home at the top of the bubble now can since home prices have fallen.

- Higher priced homes can now be Federally insured making them more affordable.

- New house’s size are smaller they during the bubble years. Contractors are building smaller homes people can more easily afford.

Overall, homeowners should find it harder to sell but as this post says it’s not impossible with some work and down to earth expectations.

By: nickel

nickel — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:45:06 +0000

Kevin: You’re exactly right. When we sold our house, we ran into agents that wanted to price it too low (to sell fast with minimum effort on their part) or too high (to get our business – they could always drop it later.

Think of it this way… If your house is properly priced at $225k, the listing it for $210k will make it sell really easily at minimum cost to the agent. You’ll lose out on $15k, but they’ll only lose $450 and still take home $6,100 (based on their 3% share of the full commission). It’s not the last $15k that pays their bills. It’s the first $210k.

Hmmm… This would be a good topic for an article in itself.

By: Harrington Brooks

Harrington Brooks — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 11:40:45 +0000

I think I have to pimp my house!

By: Kevin

Kevin — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:07:32 +0000

Great post, but Rule #1 needs a modification. I am a broker so I can comment on them and feel OK about it. Many times, agents/brokers don’t have your best interest in mind (at least not entirely). It is the job of an agent to get a deal done. You might want the highest price or the fastest transaction, but if it does not maximize the agent’s commission, then it oftentimes is not the option that the agent chooses to pursue.

I hate this comment, but I have to tell clients this all the time. “An agent or broker will tell clients and customers whatever they need to hear to get you to the table and get a deal done.” This is how they get paid and you should always remember this when choosing an agent based on what they say they can do for you. And one more thing, you, the seller or buyer, are always in charge. If the agent does not understand this, then find a new one.

Great post…

By: Personal Money Tips

Personal Money Tips — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:34:36 +0000

When we sold our last house we sold private and saved thousands on realty fees. We also undepriced the market by about 1%.

We sold the house in 4 days.

By: Pete

Pete — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 14:14:28 +0000

number 1 – get real about price – is the one i see most often around our area. People list their homes at unreasonable prices and expect them to sell. 6 months later and they’re hurting – and they end up putting it up for less than they could have in the first place.

Check out some comps in your area people – we know you love your home, but other people aren’t going to pay the price if other homes in your area aren’t going for that much!