Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

Nandy

Commander
Joined
Apr 10, 2004
Messages
2,145
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

Thanks for that link Cofe, it is not only informative but is also pretty close to the same market I am if it is not the same.
I hate to admit it but selling the house is very intimidating specially in the situation I am. Pretty much the ex will leave anytime between now and December, once she leaves I get to keep my kids (that is great) but I will have to work day's which takes my differential pay (10 percent) which is what pays the rent for the country house I am living now. Once that happens it looks like I will be forced to move back into the Charlotte house due to the money cut. Outside of all of the inconvenience to my new lifestyle that move will also bring a logistic and economical problem. I will have to sell the house I am living in, find a country house large enough that I can fit 4 teenager kids has to be close to Charlotte and do all the move to try having to rent another place to then move to the house (which might be what will happen after all). I dont remember been this overwhelmed before....
Any other advice will be welcome.
Thanks!
 

bruceb58

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 5, 2006
Messages
30,582
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

Do what ever you can to get a list of houses that have sold in your area recently. More knowledge is better than less. You can use zilow.com to get some lists of comps but they aren't usually up to date. You can't go by the zillow price either because it can be high or low. It depends on recent comps but if there aren't many recent ones or inaccurate ones(transfers to family) it can be WAY off. The worst thing you can do is to set the price too high, get a reasonable offer and not take it becuase you weren't informed. The longer the house stays on the market, the less likely it will sell even if you eventually lower the price to a correct value. Do your own reasearch and don't rely solely on the realtor.
 

Cofe

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Apr 23, 2009
Messages
1,883
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

After rethinking your situation Nandy, I thought to mention that working with a ex can be a sticky, time consuming, and distrusting situation.

In your best interest, it would be best to consult with several brokerages and get a contract at the lowest percentage rate that will suit your needs.

Ask about how soon your listing will appear on the MLS.

Who is going to pay closing costs? Adjust your asking price to cover if you have to pay closing costs.

Clean, paint, organize, and fix your house for the best look for potential buyers.

A good sales person or broker will ask if you know, and explain all the detail about selling your house. Don't be afraid to ask any questions.

Keep frequent contact with the brokerage you choose.
Wish you the best.
 

Nandy

Commander
Joined
Apr 10, 2004
Messages
2,145
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

After rethinking your situation Nandy, I thought to mention that working with a ex can be a sticky, time consuming, and distrusting situation.

Im lucky to have a very trusty relationship with the ex. She is just trying to start her life over and it seems to be in another state and that has complicated the logistic/timing of everything but I dont blame her a bit. She has given me total control of the sale since im the one more impacted by it. She is leaving whenever she needs to. I probably need to get some power of attorney or something like that for anything that might be done/sign when she is not at the state anymore.
 

Howard Sterndrive

Rear Admiral
Joined
Nov 5, 2008
Messages
4,603
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

For Sale By Owner only benefits a buyer, not the seller.

As soon as a potential buyer sees a private sale, they are suddenly willing to pay 10% less than if it has a RE agent sign.

I don't know why that is... but the buyer psychologically feels he deserves the savings.
in some neighbourhoods, without mls, you'll get no traffic and agents will tell their clients horrible stories about the house.

FSBO can work well if you have a very unique property, such as prime waterfront, with little competition.
 

mscher

Lieutenant
Joined
Apr 21, 2004
Messages
1,424
Re: Realtor help needed - Placing house in market

Bottom line is that its the agents best interest for themselves to maximize the commission vs the amount of time marketing the house. If the agent feels a quicker sale at a lower price is going to save them time so that they can go on tho the next one they will do it. Of course this strategy may run contrary to the views of the owner but the owner will often succumb to the "advice" of this real estate professional.

We fell for this quick-money trap.

Unemployed and had to hurredly move to another state for work. We had a place to stay for free, so we were not in a huge hurry to sell and could wait for a good offer, since the real estate market was very hot at that time and our home was a great pick.

Found out later, that the "comparables", that we determined a price from, were not even equal. Plus, the "professional" did not even bother mentioning, that our house would probably sell quickly even at a great price, because it was an affordable home with a perfect view of Pikes Peak, in a decent neighborhood.

Big surprise, the home sold two days later. We paid nearly $10k for someone to stick a sign in the yard, add the home to the MLS and show it to two perspective customers.

Last "professional" I'll ever sell a home with.
 
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