Valerie's Belfair WA Real Estate Blog: December 2011

When IS the right time to sell your home?

I receive a lot of calls with this and other questions this time of year.  

• When is the right season to sell?
• Should I wait til spring to put my home on the market?
• Should I take it off the market during the holidays? 
• Will the market change? 
• Isn't it better to sell in the spring and summer? 

So when IS the right time to sell your home?  

The right time to sell your home, is WHEN THE TIME IS RIGHT FOR YOU!!

First - there is no wrong or right time to sell seasonal wise.  The question and the answer falls with

  "when is the time right for YOU?" 

 Second- if you want to sell your home, it needs to be actively marketed. It Needs to be seen to be sold!

That's when its the right time to sell - when its right for YOU and your personal and financial goals. 

And how do I find that answer?

Get the FACTS and information on your local real estate market from a real estate professional.

Get a comparative market analysis on your home specifically from a professional local real estate professional.  A local real estate professional is going to know specifically what is going on in your market, which may be totally different in a neighboring market!  All real estate is local!

Discuss your goals with a professional real estate professional. Determine whether it is the right time for you to sell. For some, it very well may not be the right time. It is and should be a personal choice and decision after reviewing all of the facts of the market and your goals.

If you are waiting for the market to change - be careful! Especially if you are considering moving up, downsizing or relocating.  When homes for sale prices increase, it is going to decrease your purchasing power on the buying end.Typically you will be able to buy MORE home in this type of a market. 

During the holiday season and the fall and winter months, we tend to see the homes for sale inventory reduce considerably.  this means that there are fewer comparable homes for sale that you are competing against!

With the real estate market being as competitive as it is, wouldn't you rather have LESS competition in the sale of your home?  The fall/winter and holiday period offers LESS COMPETITION!  

Are there fewer buyers out there this time of year? It may seem that there are fewer buyers out looking at homes during this time of year and there very well may be. THERE ARE BUYERS OUT PURCHASING YEAR ROUND,  BUT what we typically see during this time of year is a more serious buyer and not so  many "lookie lou's, dreamers, or what ifs."  

It is a fairly serious buyer that is out looking at homes in the cold, wind, rain, possibly snow.  They also see your home at its worst (which is not necessarily a bad thing); this can take allot of questions out of the buyers mind as to how the home will "fair" during rain, wind, snow and so on.  A home can still have good curb appeal especially during the Christmas season when the decorations bring a warm, cozy and inviting feeling to the homes. 

With fewer homes on the market during the fall/winter/holiday seasons, the buyers have fewer choices which brings more attention to your home. You could very well miss YOUR BUYER and delay a sale by waiting for a "season to sell" rather than selling when the time is right for you.

Have questions? Give me a call.  I offer a FREE, NO OBLIGATION comparative market analysis for your property/home.  I would love to provide you factual information re the current real estate market for the Hood Canal, Belfair, Allyn and surrounding areas to help you determine your goals and help answer "when is the right time for you to sell your home."

And remember - My success is YOUR success.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM MY HOME TO YOURS!  

I am not a mind reader. Are you? 

How many people do you know that are mind readers?  That's my question of the day or week or whatever....

Why?   Well because this past month has been the same situation with a few sellers... we all know it is definetely a tough real estate market out there, but you can be successful if you take the "trying to mind read" part out of it.

 Here's the scenario:

A seller receives an offer- it, of course is a "low ball" offer that turns the sellers face red with furry, makes fire come from their eyes,head spin, feet stomp, teeth grit, incoherent language I can't understand as he/she then says to me :

 "I will NOT respond to this ridiculous, how dare you @#$%^&*(&*(!   offer!!!!!!!    Double emphasis - double emphasis - Fists clenched ready to kill me seller.....!!!!!!!"

I know I've got my work cut out for me.  

Breathe Valerie - remain calm - let's talk him through this.....Help him take the emotion out of what is obviously going to be a negotiation process...  (oh and by the way, I LOVE a good solid negotiation process).... 

"Mr./Mrs. Seller," I calmly respond, "I fully understand your furry and fire, but let's respond with what you feel IS acceptable. I am pretty sure neither one of us is a mind reader; come to think of it, the buyer is not either, so let's respond in a professional manner with a price that is acceptable to you, as well as give the buyers the facts of how your price was obtained."  

Mr./Mrs. Seller stomps his feet with:"I absolutely refuse to respond to that no-good,no life, $%^&* son of a gun buyer - who thinks he's going to "steal my house....!!!!"

"Mr./Mrs. Seller," I calmly respond, "I can appreciate your anger and again, I fully understand your fury and fire, but lets send this buyer a counteroffer with what is acceptable to you."

Mr./Mrs. Seller say "NO ! This person is not serious and just wants my house for nothing. They can come up to my price or just go away."

"Puuurrfectt Mr./Mrs. Seller. How about you TELL the buyer that with a COUNTEROFFER in WRITING; unless you or the buyer are one of those mind reader people - how is the buyer going to know exactly what is acceptable?  If you don't ask the buyer to come up to your price, well, you will never know what he would say."       

After another few minutes of mumbling and grumbling, the seller agrees albeit reluctantly.

"Well Okay, but I shouldn't even respond.....@#$%^&*()," 

 I stand with pen in hand poised for his autograph on the counteroffer...and reiterate -  "Let's not rely on trying to 'mind read' the buyer and possibly lose a good solid honest to goodness approved Buyer."

After presenting the facts of comparable properties for the sellers neighborhood and home, along with the sellers' counteroffer, the buyer and seller have come to a mutual agreement.

 Thank goodness I gave up mind reading a long long time ago. You never know where something will end up or go if you don't ask or tell.  None of us are mind readers!

Take the mind reading out of the picture and you too can be successful. Utilize the knowledge and experience of a professional real estate broker.