Stix ‘n Brix

They key to selling a house quickly and at the best market price is to make buyers fall in love with it. Here are some things you can do to turn a budding housing romance into a full-blown love affair.

Uncover The Bones

Your home’s “bones” are its basic space and room layout. During your time living there you’ve gradually buried those bones under layers of furnishings, decorative items, and personal mementos. Your goal should be to make it easy for buyers to imagine their own furnishings in the house, and the presence of yours makes that harder to do. That’s why it’s so important to clean out everything possible.

You’re going to be moving anyway, so get a head start on your packing now. Take down all wall décor, clear all shelves and  tables, and empty the cabinets and closets. Get rid of any furniture that you don’t absolutely need. Whatever you don’t sell or throw away, put into temporary storage, preferably off-site.

Clean It Up

Now that you’ve cleared away the clutter, it’s time to clean away the accumulated dirt. Buyers don’t like to be reminded that real people have been living in “their” new house, and they certainly don’t like the idea of having to do a heavy-duty cleaning before they move in. A clean house can attract offers that are higher by thousands of dollars.

Neutral Does It

You may love your burgundy bedroom and your mustard accent wall, but you’re not selling your personal taste here. You’re selling living space, and to get the best price you want it to appeal to the widest possible audience. It’s time to repaint those decorator walls in a nice, boring neutral color. An added bonus is how newly-painted walls cut the odors that have worked their way into the old finish over the years. This is also a good time to replace patterned window treatments with simple, inexpensive (and of course, neutral) curtains or shades.

Curb Appeal Sells

The condition of a home’s grounds and exterior set a buyer’s expectations before they even get through the front door. If they see a messy, poorly maintained yard or dirty, paint-worn exterior walls, they’ll immediately go on high alert for more problems. If the curb view is neat and attractive they’re more likely to cut you some slack on little things inside. Power wash or paint the siding, stucco and trim. Keep the lawn, trees, and bushes neatly trimmed. Lay new sod to cover bald spots, and plant lots of flowers. Nothing fancy, inexpensive annuals from the home center will work fine.

Set A Comfortable Mood

When buyers come to tour your house, make sure that lights are on, and curtains and blinds opened to create as much light as possible. Set the climate controls for optimal comfort. Avoid using air fresheners because trying to cover up one odor with another only creates a stronger, more unpleasant one.

Head Off Their Doubts

A great idea, and one that few sellers take advantage of, is to have a home inspection performed when first putting the property on the market. Provide buyers with copies of the inspection report and a list of how the problems found have been addressed. Also make available a list of your utility and service providers including things like your handyman, lawn or pool service. Knowing that they can call a service that is already familiar with the house will reassure them and help them feel like they’re already a part of the community.

Price It Right

All of the above ideas are worthless if your home isn’t priced appropriately for the market. They will help you get the best price for your market, but nothing will make a buyer pay more than a house is worth. Always keep in mind that your house seems more unique to you than it does to buyers, who have probably looked at dozens of others online or in person before yours. In the end, they will choose the house that offers them the best value.

This post was inspired by a group writing project organized by problogger.net

Some of the most frequently-asked questions I get from home buyers and sellers concern title insurance. What is it? Do I really need it? Who pays for it? How much does it cost?

The answer to the last question is easy. Currently in Central Florida the cost of an owner’s title insurance policy is approximately $575 on the first $100,000 of the contract sale price, plus 0.5% of the amount over $100,000. So, for instance, teh owner’s title policy on a $250,000 home would be $575 plus $750 ($150,000 time .005), or $1,325. These are approximations, but good enough to use for ball-park estimates.

Most other questions about title insurance have already been answered in a very well-written article by Jack M. Guttentag, Professor of Finance Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, and founder of a mortgage technology company. Click here to read Professor Guttentag’s beautifully clear explanation of what title insurance does, who needs it, and why.

I was a lucky little boy. My father and two big brothers all took time to play with me, and in the process taught me the skills of boyhood: Football, basketball, baseball, wrestling and more. They were my first, and best, coaches.

One of the most important baseball skills they taught me was how to field a ground ball. Retrieving a small, hard object that’s rapidly bouncing and rolling in your general direction is a major challenge for a five year old, and the secret to success involves doing something that’s counter to an already well-developed instinct for self-preservation: You have to put yourself in front of the ball.

Try to grab a grounder from the side as it passes you by, and it’s sure to take an errant bounce just as you reach for it. Chase it down from behind and eventually you’ll catch it, but by then even the slowest base runner will have circled the diamond and be trading high-fives with his team mates. No, if you want to make the play, you’ve got to put yourself in that nasty little sphere’s path and wait for it to come to you.

Real estate markets often move like ground balls. They jump in fits and starts, but in pretty much one general direction. The probability that you’ll price your property perfectly when you first put it on the market are a slim as your chances of grabbing a grounder from the side. The faster the market is changing, the more likely you are to miss.

Chasing the market from behind doesn’t work either, though pricing below a rising market can be a necessary evil if a quick sale is critical. Trying to extract the highest price in a declining market, however, is a ticket to disaster. Like chasing that grounder, every time you stop to grab it, you  find that it’s moved just beyond your reach. You may eventually catch it, but you’ll lose significant time and money.

Far better to get in front of the market. For sellers in rising markets this is easy and fun. Just price at a slight premium to the market and wait. Chances are the higher price will more than cover your carrying costs.

But sellers in a declining market find this a lot harder to do, like a little boy putting his body in the ball’s path. It takes guts, but it’s the only way to make the play in time. Sellers in a down market need to ask themselves “Do I want to take a little less now, or a lot less later?”

Do you want to sell your house? Get in front of the ball.

No matter which way the housing market is moving, the most successful sellers are always at the front of the trend.

When real estate prices were rising fast, it paid sellers to price their homes at the very top of the market or even beyond. The last home to sell in a neighborhood generally made the most profit. With a glut of homes on the market and buyers scarce, today’s smart sellers are taking the opposite approach.

With prices flat or falling it’s better to price low for a quick sale because as time goes by the chances of finding a buyer at or near the original asking price decreases. Many market declines begin quietly, then snowball as sellers who have held on too long in the hope of a fast reversal begin to panic.

If your local area is experiencing an increase in the number of homes for sale and a stagnant or decreasing rate of actual closed transactions, now is the time to cash out, even if it’s not for as much as you’d hoped.

It’s no secret that children don’t like to move. And why should they? Moving means leaving friends and familiar places for the unknown. For a child, who controls very little of their life as things are, the unknown is very, very scary.

You can help your children become willing, even enthusiastic participants in your move, but it takes preparation and a willingness to give them a little bit of well-defined authority.

Prepare Them
Prepare your children well in advance for the possibility of a move. Talk to them honestly about the reasons why you’re moving. Don’t sugar-coat things. The better they understand your decision, the more secure they’ll feel. Let them know what will be happening and when so that they have time to prepare. Show them their new home area on a map, and point out some of the attractions and benefits to living there, as a child’s eyes would see them. Reassure them that they’ll be encouraged to keep in touch with their old friends by phone and/or online. If return visits will be feasible, discuss if and how frequently they might occur.

Motivate Them
Involve your children in finding a new home, but don’t give them veto power. They must understand that the move is going forward no matter what. You should grant them limited input in things like selecting the décor for their room, but not which neighborhood or home you’ll be moving into.

As moving day approaches, let them help you pack your things. Do this before any of their own things are packed. Helping put your things in boxes will act like a magnet, drawing them to the idea of packing their own belongings.

Reward Them
Make sure that there’s a reward to be enjoyed after the move is complete, but keep it realistic and related to the new home. Perhaps a new bike to explore the neighborhood, or a day canoeing on a river near to the new town. If you’re moving from Florida to New York, a trip to Yellowstone is both too grand and irrelevant to the move.

Finally, keep your promises small, but keep your promises. Your children will be especially sensitive to any disappointments during this period. Better to deliver a pleasant surprise than to fail to fulfill a promise.