Once you have made the decision to sale your home, start thinking of determining its Market Value. Take the emotion out of your decision by being objective about the sale. Research what is going on in your neighborhood. Remember what you paid for your home has nothing to do with its market value. Its market value is simply what a willing buyer will pay for the home today. You have to be objective in the pricing of your home or it will not sell.
Set up a CMA immediately
You can’t know enough about your market area. A comparable Market Analysis allows the buyer to easily keep track of what is happening. A market savvy realtor such as Bill Edge can set up a CMa for you and provide you with the marketing service you need. The CMA can be customized to show short sales and foreclosures separately from other properties. They are a high influence in the market and you need to know how they are affecting sale prices in your area.
Things you can do:
Drive around the neighborhood:
No one wants to move into an unsafe neighborhood. Is your neighborhood safe? Are the neighbors keeping up their houses? Are there 18 wheelers parked inform of homes? Is that a Pit Bull trying to break a one inch chain so it can eat me alive? Your neighborhood will affect the price you get for your home. If the neighborhood does not look like it will qualify for a Walt Disney move yo9u may need to lower your price? If the neighborhood has areas pools, parka, jogging trails, and close proximity to major freeway and shipping you may be able to raise the price.
Go to Open Houses:
You are in competition with every home for sale. Open houses give u an opportunity to view comparable homes for sale and visit with the hoist about the neighborhood. The listing price may not be reflective of the true market value of the home. If it is short sale or foreclose the home maybe priced lower than market value. Your home is like you children it is hard to be objective when discussing your home. Concentrate on gathering information and not on the difference in every detail between your home and the open home. Try to just come away with a basic assessment of the home. Sucnas the home is slightly worse than my home or it is much better.
Do research on line:
Har.com – Website of the Houston Real Estate association
Innerloophouston.com – excellent source of information with searches
Realtor.com features homes located near by the subject property.
Zillow.com – posts homes for sale by owner. Is about everything a consumer wants to know about real estate.
Houstonforeclosureinsider.com – information on foreclosures and the process
Buy an Appraisal
The National Association of Realtors states “unlike a CMA, a professional appraisal is rarely free. However, the several hundred dollars you’ll pay for an appraisal, depending on the size of your home and the complexity of the work, could be money well spent if you’re making a major financial decision that hinges on the value of your home. Appraisers rely on an in-person inspection of your home, recent sales of comparable homes and other data to arrive at an opinion of value. The appraiser’s report is a full-blown description of your home and the criteria used to formulate the valuation. “
Don’t give up your home!
Short sales and foreclosures have caused the prices of homes to drop. The end of the housing crisis is at least three years away. There are more than 7,100,000 homes that lenders have foreclosed on or will foreclose on in the near future that are not listed yet. This shadow inventory of homes will affect the market for years to come. Your lender does not want another foreclosure to deal with. Just because you owe more on the home than it is worth does not mean you cannot sale it. You may qualify for a short sale. With a short sale the lender is willing to allow a sale of the home for less than what is owed. Before you walk away from your home listen to an experience realtor such as Bill Edge explain the benefits of a short sale.
Call Bill Edge at 713-240-2949 to see Houston Homes in 24 hours or less.
Source: National Association of Realtors