I really need help (selling my house)

Damn you still haven't sold that house! I remember you posting it earlier. I'd love to be interested because I work just down the street from that house....but only if you plan on dropping it about 200 grand.

Good luck man, I know that must be tough. I don't have much to offer, but I'm sure some of the other real estate guys on here can give you some guidance.

 

looks good to me.

How much is shipping to Vancouver?

(good luck Riley. Sweet house).

 

no one wants their neighbor to hear them doing the nasty.

 

Rileydog-

As I'm sure you know, this is currently a buyers market. The market will pick up again in March.

Until then, to stop the bleeding, I would look into renting it out on a 6 month lease.

That should put you into the summer months and prime sellers market. At that point, you can assess the pricing and showcasing of your home.

I know it's not comforting, but that's the reality of the situation. Most of the time, you can make a nice profit, but there are times when you are forced to depart the transaction near break even.

 

Its a patio home, not a townhome.

 

Drop it to $399,900 if possible. I know that may alleviate any if not all of your negotiating room, but based on the time of the year and that I don't think a price reduction by $5000-$10,000 will really make that much difference. The $100,000 price markers (100, 200, 300K, etc.) are the biggest price markers, so to put it just below $400,000 should open it up to all the lookers that are searching up to $400,000.

I sell real estate, and although as an agent I can enter any price seach criteria into the MLS when searching for a client, most agents will elect to go in $100,000, $50,000, $25,000 and then $20,000 increments. In other words, when an agent pulls up a list of properties for a potential client they will seach between $100,000-$200,000, etc. Being right below a big price marker will enable all the people that are qualified up to $400,000 to see your home (many which are not looking at it right now).

Another tip would be to offer a bonus to the agent that sells the property - not your agent, but the agent that brings the buyer. For example if you offer a 4% commission to the agent that brings a buyer for your house, and all the otehr properties that he/she is showing them are offering 3% which do you think he/she will push harder to sell yours or the competition?

You could also offer incentives to the buyer themselves like offering to pay their closing costs, decorating allowances, etc. Your agent should be able to give you some other ideas.

It would be a good idea to have your agent conduct a fresh market analysis before you decide anything and lean on her expertise, as things may have changed since you put it on the market.

Obviously, not knowing your entire situation, my recommendations may not be feasible, but even implementing one of those ideas could help.

Good luck!

 

Talk to your agent about adding in a BTSA and closing cost assistance in lieu of dropping the price. This is VERY attractive to both the buying agent and buyer. Tracking data shows that houses sell in less time and closer to the asking price when offering these as incentives.

EDIT: Sorry Ming Dynasty ....didn't see you had already suggested the same

Good luck!

PS - Not saying open houses never work, but more often than not, they are a complete waste of time, and are more for the realtor's benefit than the seller's.

 

Stories like this are going to be commonplace after the surge in townhome and condo development in Houston in the last few years.

Good luck to you in selling it.

 

So true, National Statistics say they are successful less than 1% of the time.

 

I assume you still haven't lost money on it.

Real Estate prices are very volatile, especially when it's not a traditional house where additional construction of similiar properties can be had for the same or less money, in newer condition, and in even closer locations.

Rather than stressing about it, I'd lower the price to the break even amount and move on.

 

Do you have any furniture you can put in it? I recently purchased a house and I could not stand to look at empty places. I couldn't imagine where my furniture would go. Without that, I couldn't imagine living there. In an empty house, there's nothing to make the buyer imagine it as their home. Basically, I turned around, walked out the door and went to the next home. I bought a home that had staged furniture inside. It wasn't great furniture, but it gave me an idea where to put the couch and TV.

I assume the real estate agent is doing the typical thing at an open house of fresh baked cookies. If not, I seriously suggest you invest in a couple of Yankee Candles. Have them burning while people are looking. Choose food scents -- Buttercream Frosting is one of the very best. Cookie scents are always winners.

It might not hurt to put a couple coats of paint on the walls, too. All real estate agents are going to say that neutral colors are good (and they're right), but something other than white and plain beige might be nice. A mocha/light brown in the master bedroom. An olive green-ish color in the bathroom (this is popular at spas). Something to give it a little splash of color, so people will remember it better. I always thought the all white houses were boring and non-memorable.

Looking at the pictures of the yard, they're just boring. Curb appeal is real. You may want to put in some colorful bedding plants to make the front more inviting. I'd add some more shrubs in the back, too. If you've got standard builder-installed shrubs (I'm guessing that's what they are -- I can't tell too well in the photo), replace those as well. Try something like a flowering shrub -- indian hawthorne (I prefer the pink over the white, myself) is a nice one that will form a hedge and add color. Camelias are also very nice. Throw some bedding plants in the backyard, too. I don't see anything in the photos of the yard that would make it stand out over any other house I might be looking at. Definitely put in some mulch -- red mulch would be good, so it matches the brick of the house and looks like it ties in. In fact, they're completely unmemorable.

I hope this helps -- it shouldn't be too expensive to do any of these things!

 

Try "Beau." He buys beautiful houses... kinda like "Ug."




Maybe "Guzel" is scaring them off.




















I have no idea what I'm typing at this hour, or why for that matter.

 

I'll give you 13.52 and a box of cracker jacks.

 

You realtor really said that? wow

1) Nowadays, most buyers will ask for closing cost assistance, even when its not offered up front. It has nothing to do with desperation, it has to do with the latest market trend.

2) BTSAs are an incentive for buyer realtor's to push your house over others that it may be in competition with. Again, statistics show that homes sell quicker when this is offered. So while it may cost you $1,000 - $2,000 (I wouldn't offer 1% just yet), it will be negated when you sell your home quicker, avoiding P&I and taxes. Its basically a wash.


As far as desperation, I wouldn't classify it as that. You are a motivated seller who wants to sell his house.

This should be your decision, not your realtor's.

 

I think that largely depends on who the buyer is. If it's an inexperienced home buyer, then it sounds like just another bargain. To an experienced investor, it signifies a good amount of negotiation room.

 

Not necessarily. And actually, my wife encourages BTSAs and closing cost assistance and rarely has anyone come back and asked to negotiate either.

 

Open houses do NOT sell houses. Price sells houses.

BTSAs are a good thing. I just sold a house with a BTSA (close in a week) and am pleased with thte result.

Listing agents do NOT sell houses. They assist in setting the initial and following prices. And they list your house on MLS, woohoo!

The buyer's agent picks houses for the buyers to see. They also smooth out the buyer's "bumps" in finding the right home. With all things being equal (like a bunch of very similar patio homes in the Galleria area), the buyer's agent is going to prefer houses with BTSAs.