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How To Sell Your Home:
It’s easy, find the right Realtor, list your home, sell it, and move.
How we wish it were that simple! My goal is to help you accomplish these steps with the least disruption to your family and life. My purpose is to protect your financial interests. It is possible to simplify the process for you with my systematic and proven approach, but it will take our united effort and I will be with you every step of the way. The person to guide you is the person you hire, not an assistant.
Once you interview me in person, you will know there is no other Realtor that knows Camarillo better or loves it more! There is also no other Realtor who is as determined as I am to provide you with all the tools to make secure real estate decisions. With my systematic and proven approach, I will make the process run smoothly, every step of the way.
The Right Realtor:
It is essential to use a “Realtor” as opposed to a real estate “agent”. Most people don’t know there is a difference, but Realtors are members of the California Association of Realtors and follow strict standards and a code of ethics. If a problem comes up, you will be protected. Be sure to research your Realtor like you would research a surgeon for a life-saving surgery, it is that important. For such a significant financial event you want experience, competence, and most importantly, integrity. You also want a Realtor who will personally guide you through the process instead of handing you off to an assistant.
If you are selling a Camarillo property, it is especially important to ensure that your agent/Realtor specializes only in Camarillo property. With over 30,000 households in Camarillo, only a local Realtor can understand and concentrate on all the neighborhood nuances that affect property pricing. No matter how successful an out-of-area Realtor is in their own region, they are still an out of area Realtor and they can not possibly know how to price a property in Camarillo if they don’t work here on a daily basis. Your Uncle Bob from San Diego might promise you thousands of dollars in returned commissions, but almost always I have watched such listing mistakes cost sellers tens, and yes hundreds of thousands of dollars. If a Realtor does not stick to the areas they know best, they are not doing you justice.
The Right Company:
With 650 Realtors in 13 local offices, Troop Real Estate Market dominance in Ventura County is just one of the many reasons I work for Troop Real Estate. As it is the largest independent brokerage in Ventura County. Unlike “national” franchises, where each office is individually owned and operated, Troop employs over 650 Realtors in thirteen local offices. Troop Real Estate is large enough to contract for legal services with a local real estate law firm to advise and protect our clients. Troop Realtors also do not have to pay the steep fees that agents at franchises are required to pay, which means that we have more resources and a bigger advertising budget for your home. With so many agents, we have more networking opportunities, too. Picture it: even if each of the 650 Troop agents represents only 4 to 10 buyers,
think how many buyers will be exposed to your listing! That is the kind of expertise and protection backing our firm that “National” franchises cannot offer. There is just no competition in the level of exposure of your home that Troop Real Estate provides throughout the organization and in Ventura County. It is easy to ascertain how Troop’s 650 agents best serve the interest of their sellers by networking among themselves. It's no wonder that Troop continuously dominates Ventura County year after year in sales volume.
Preparing Your Home to Sell:
If you want your property to appeal to people who will pay the highest price for the property, you must understand and respect the fact that they will be looking for a fair value in top condition. It is essential to make the first impression a lasting one, and more importantly, a favorable one. Whether you know it or not, you are competing with every other home that is currently for sale. . . . don’t “help” other homes sell because the condition of yours turns buyers away!. Maximize this opportunity to earn the best price for your home in the shortest amount of time.
Pre-Listing Home Inspection:
While not mandatory, I advise Seller’s to spend the fee for a certified home inspection at the beginning of the listing. You will know up front about major items (air conditioning, roof problems, etc.) and have the choice of repairing the problems to get top dollar for your home, offering a credit for the repair, or simply disclosing the issue up front so the Buyer knows what they are buying for the price they are offering. Full and honest disclosure will also limit your legal exposure if problems are found .This is another great way to limit your legal exposure after the sale of your home. Imagine having your home on the market for an extended period of time and then having a Buyer cancel or ask you for an unreasonable amount of money for repairs halfway through an escrow. The Seller is at a clear disadvantage to negotiate when the Buyer can walk away and take their deposit too, if the Seller doesn’t agree to fix everything or offer a credit for repairs, they face the real possibility that the Buyer will cancel. Cancelled escrows sometimes worry new potential buyers and create needless questions because of the previous escrow cancellation. A WORD ABOUT DISCLOSURES: The best thing any seller can do is to completely disclose all known issues. . . and hope the seller of their next home is just as honest!
Interior & Exterior Preparations:
The first priority should be to make the home appear spacious, neutral, and in great condition. We call this process staging your home for a sale. Staging your home is different from how you live in your home. Potential buyers need to see the space so they can visualize their own designs and belongings, so. start by packing all non-essential knick-knacks, family pictures, and anything else you may not need before your moving date. To you, this one or two items on shelves and countertops may look bare, but to buyers this appears “spacious”. You want buyers to visualize your home as their own and ready to move into, and bare walls, counters and living spaces go a long way to accomplish this. You must learn to look at your home through the eyes of the buyer…they will certainly be viewing your home with their own style in mind.
Try not to think of this as your living area for now. This is a showcasing of your home, not your belongings, no matter how beautiful they are. So pack as much as you can, then pack some more. It has to be done anyway, you might as well get prepared and store all your boxes and extra furniture before the listing goes on the MLS. If you can't pack things away, do your best to minimize clutter. Think of it as a jump start on organizing for your actual move! It must be said that it is also vitally important to securely lock away all valuables and medications and anything precious to you. Realtor’s may have a difficult time keeping more than two people together in each room to watch, and it becomes impossible with small groups. If at all possible, rent a storage space, get prepared and store all your boxes and extra furniture before the listing goes on the MLS. It is understandable that packing and storing is not always possible. The point is, do as much as you can to minimize clutter in a home for sale. At least put extra items away, possibly in your garage?
Remember, the exterior of your home is the first thing potential buyers see as they drive up. The exterior of your home is just as important as the interior. Some people may not even get out of the car if they don’t like the exterior, so make sure that your home looks inviting and well-maintained from the street . Your property needs to look good from the streetup to, up the sidewalk, and to the front door. You definitely want to give the impression of a well cared for home. Even if you have to hire out the job, trim all the landscaping that needs it and by all means, plant some pretty flowers! Don’t forget to touch-up or fully paint the exterior and “stage” the entry way by getting rid of the cobwebs, moving all the toys out of sight! A new garage door and a little paint, even a touch-up, do wonders for the return investment, (even if all you paint is the entry).. Finally, park every car in the garage or down the street if needed. “Curb appeal” has a lot of power in the real estate world;, make yours clean and inviting.
Tips For Showing the Home:
During the listing period you can count on buyers wanting to see your home when you are the least ready to show it! It just seems to be that way so prepare in advance for those unexpected moments by cleaning regularly or hiring a temporary weekly housecleaner , this will do wonders for your peace of mind with these visits. When the buyers arrive, it is important to make sure to turn on all the lights, open all the blinds, and have your great smelling fragrant candles on hand. There is a fine balance between heavy pleasant scents and overpowering ones, so don’t over do the “smell good stuff”! Listen to your Realtor’s advice about and be very aware of home or pet odors, this is a first impression turn off, an off-putting smell could weigh heavily against your home.
During the showing, plan on being out of the house if at all possible. Please help your Realtor with this! Potential buyers stay longer and feel more at ease when they can walk through your home discussing it with each other as they go, and they are definitely not comfortable doing this with the sellers in the house! Trust me on this, they are not comfortable with the sellers in the house. If you must be present, If you cannot leave the home for a soda or run an errand, maybe you and the family can sit outside on the patio during the showing? If they have a question they will ask the Realtor. Whatever you do, let your Realtor show the home without offering interfering information unless they ask.! Potential buyers usually walk through quickly to see if the floor plan and condition of the home warrants a closer look. Sometimes they can tell as they drive up if they want the home or not. I have had some with an appointment refuse to go in after driving up, so having the homeowner walk through and show them every room can be difficult for the buyers. Your Realtor may be showing the buyers with a certain script in mind that will reveal buyer motivation and preferences. Let them do their job!
Remember that your home is competing for showings, so , make it easy to show!. There could be hundreds of homes that fit a bbuyer’s criteria and their Realtor will schedule the most promising first. If someone wants to see your home don’t let them miss it. What we must consider is that Realtors have to show homes in a certain order each day that may start on one end of town and end at another. They may have 20 different viewings in different parts of town. If they can’t fit your house into the schedule, they may just skip it and move on to one of the hundred other homes on the list. It is often tricky to call twenty different listing Realtors or homeowners to show listings in a certain order. So when your Realtor or a buyer’s agent calls you, try your very, veryvery best to be flexible and accommodating. Even if the house is not in perfect shape or you have an event planned, try to arrange at least a brief walkthrough. Don’t pass up any opportunity for prospective buyers to see the property.
Be accommodating. Don’t let your home be over looked because it is difficult to schedule a showing. When there were 60 homes on the market in Camarillo, there was little chance of a home being over looked. Now that there are over 650 homes for sale in Camarillo, agents are hard pressed to show every home.
Pricing:
Every seller obviously wants to get the most money for his or her property. Ironically, the best way to do this is NOT to list too high.
When a new property hits the market, both Buyers and Realtors will scramble to look at it—this is almost always the time when homes sell for the highest price. Remember, you will never have more activity on the home than you will in the first three to four weeks of the listing.
Your goal is to have the entire pool of qualified buyers looking at your home, and a high listing price will prevent some prospective buyers from even seeing it and lead others to expect more than what you have to offer. There are buyers out there who have seen everything available and still haven’t found what they are looking for—don’t miss your chance to sell them your fairly priced home at the best price.
Sometimes it is easy to spot those over priced homes, they languish on the market, then there is the inevitable price reductions. The danger is that the seller’s are eventually “chasing the market down” and selling below value because the listing is so stale. This happens quickly in today’s market, a listing becomes stale after the first two months!
Your property is competing against comparable properties in your area. You only help to sell your neighbors fairly priced home by over-pricing yours. Today’s buyers are sophisticated and represented by qualified realtors. Don’t let those Realtors “use” your overpriced home to make one of their reasonably priced listings sell easier. The goal is to have the entire pool of qualified buyers looking at your home in order to get the best price. When a new property hits the market, buyers and realtors both will scramble to look at it. It is common knowledge that the property will usually sell for the highest price during this time. After the initial surge of interest, usually the only people to look at it will be those buyers new to the market place. Remember, you will never have more activity on the home than you will in the first three to four weeks of the listing. The buyers out there who have seen everything for sale and haven’t found what they want are just waiting for something new on the market. Don’t miss your chance to sell them your fairly priced home at the best price. You might wonder about the philosophy of overpricing your home in case you find that one buyer who will pay more for what you believe is special about your house.
“Rarely” is the answer to how often that works, and you’re better advised to buy a lottery ticket. Consumers have just too much information available, especially with the internet, for overpricing to be effective. The reality is that there are some Rrealtors out there who will list your overpriced home just to secure the listing, knowing all to well that the price will have to eventually come down if it is expected to generate offers. Be careful—they will leave their sign in front of your home for the free advertising, but they will not be working in your best interest!
However, once in a blue moon there is a truly unique property that a buyer may want to spend way too much money for? In those a few special cases, it makes sense to price the home on the high side in case there is someone who will pay a higher amount for ita unique home. The problem is,Unfortunately, although we all like to think that our home is special, these truly unique homes are extremely rare. For the vast majority of Sellers, the best strategy is to price it competitively and sell it quickly.
Remember, today’s buyers are sophisticated, well-informed, and represented by qualified Realtors—you will not be able to fool them into paying more than a house is wortth! Another aspect about pricing too high is that overpriced properties are usually on the market for quite a long time, even with initial price adjustments. Some buyers wonder about price changes. They may suspect that something must be “wrong” with the property and overly scrutinize it. This is an unnecessary disadvantage when it is time to negotiate, so avoid this by pricing right to begin with!
Discount Commissions & “By Owner”:
Before I was a Realtor I sold five of my homes “By Owner” and was lucky until the last one blew up into problems. Then the light came on; by selling my own house I was risking everything I had ever worked for. Without essential legal and professional representation, IT WAS NO DIFFERENT THAN REPRESENTING MYSELF IN A TRIAL WITHOUT LEGAL TRAINING. I will never, ever take that kind of risk again, but I was just one of those people who has to touch the fire to see how hot it was. Take my word for it., selling a home “By Owner” is not only as bad as driving without insurance, it is also like getting behind the wheel without knowing how to drive—and taking your family along with you.
Millions of people have relied upon a third party “agent” to be the neutral party for “protection”, and I can tell you from experience, it is very similar to being a divorce attorney. Sometimes things go smoothly, and sometimes everyone wants to fight. When problems come up, a good, rational experienced Realtor is worth their weight in gold.
Each real estate transaction is unique. If you are planning to sell property in Camarillo, come talk to me today and we will discuss the best strategy for your home!
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