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MY home is still not sold!!
Your home has been On-The-Market since January...in the beginning, a lot of people came in..then it slowed down...then you started reducing the price..NOW...NO ONE is looking..??
What the $%@#!!..?
Who's fault is it?...Your agent? The buyers? President Bush? Nancy Pelosi?
Let's dispense with "Blame", for now..and examine some cold, hard facts.
The most recent statistics: The single-family homes inventory (all homes currently on the market) is at a 16 year high. The "Bean Counters" in the US Government and the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) calculate the state of the real estate market based on the number of homes available (also referred to as "Supply").
There now is a 9.6-month supply of homes on the market nationwide. This means that if no new homes were listed, it would take that long to deplete the current inventory at the present rate of sales.
That tally is the largest since October 1991.
Prices: Home values in Central New Jersey have been calculated at a decrease of 0.7% per month for 2007..equal to an 8.4% per year decline in the value of a single-family home (stats from Otteau Valuation Group, an independent real estate evaluation firm in East Brunswick, NJ and the most accurate and reliable source of data available www.Otteau.com)
So...you're trying to sell your home...you listed it at $345,900 on January 2nd..8 months later...it now has a likely market value of $326,530 (based on the preceding info.) Now...keep in mind: I said MARKET VALUE...not APPRAISED VALUE. What's the difference?
Appraised Value: an analysis of a home's value, for a specific purpose (mortgage loan, refinancing, estate valuation, court proceedings, etc.)..based on the most recent closed sales of similar properties, in a specific geographic area..usually within municipal or zip code boundaries.
Market Value: an analysis of a home's value based on the highest price a BUYER is LIKELY to pay for it. Unlike an Appraisal, a Market Value Analysis considers not only the most recent CLOSED sales, but also..
* Homes which are currently "pending" or "Under Contract"...they've got contracts on them..but have not yet CLOSED. This helps us track realtime trends in your market...how long was it on the market? how many times was it shown? Were there multiple offers?
* Homes which are currently On-The-Market...this is your competition. An accurate analysis MUST consider the OTHER homes which prospective Buyers will be looking at..in addition to your home and as a COMPARISON to your home. Look...as of Friday, September 14, 2007:
Edison...324 homes competing with you
Metuchen...49 homes competing with you
Woodbridge Township....470 homes competing with you
* Available homes in neighboring towns. Yes..that's right. A North Edison buyer WILL also look at homes in Colonia, ..a Metuchen buyer will also see homes in North Edison and North 8th Ave in South Edison. That's a dynamic of this market which most people (including most real estate agents) overlook. What does it mean? It means you have even more competition..and we need to position your home even more aggressively to compete.
Wow. Quite depressing, right? Well..maybe. But you do have some options...read on..
Is this YOUR situation?
1. You HAVE to sell...relocation, need a larger or smaller home, financial issues, already purchased another home, you want to purchase another home, etc
2. Your home was Overpriced from the beginning. You wanted to Test The Market..or Try It At This Price..or They-Sold-Their's-For $XXX-And-Ours-Is-Better..or I'm-Not-Giving-This-House-Away..or..My-Agent-Showed-Me-Comps-When-We-Listed-But-None-Of-Them-Even-Came-Close-To-Our-House..or..We-Can-Always-Reduce-Our-Price-Later..or..I'll-Get-My-Price-Or-I-Won't-Sell
3. I've been trying to sell my home without a Realtor®..and now I need some advice.
4. I've been trying to sell my home with a Realtor®..and I'd like a fresh perspective.
Here's the Good News: Buyers ARE purchasing homes...at a brisk pace:
2007 Year-to-date Closed Properties (Single-Family Homes) : Friday, September 14, 2007
EDISON: 435 homes sold at an average of 96% of the Listed price...in an average of 62 days
1.69 homes per day SOLD in 2007 1.72 homes per day SOLD in 2006
So..you still want/need to sell..and move on with your life.
I'll sell your home..and get you going to where you need to be. Period.
"Yeah..sure you can, Frank."
"You Realtors® are all the same"
"All you guys want to do is reduce the price!"
"All you do is put up a sign..take some crappy photos..and then you disappear"
"I'm NOT paying you 6% to sell MY house!"
"That's exactly what the last guy/girl said"
You've heard the expression: "Talk is cheap"..etc. etc. Many real estate agents will tell you that they can sell your home Faster...higher..and for a lower fee than anyone else. However, what is it that you really need? Do you need (or want) an agent who tells you your home is worth $ XXXX..because she has "sold a lot of homes in this neighborhood"...or he "Knows the market well enough". Do you want an agent who will tell you what you WANT to hear?..or..What you NEED to hear?
Is your primary objective to sell your home..or to hire the agent with the lowest commission?
Your #1 Objective should be to hire the Realtor® who presents a written Marketing Plan to promote, sell and CLOSE your home..at the highest Market Value..to the best buyer(s)..in the least amount of time...with the least amount of stress to you. This is what I do. All the time. With every client.
At your request, I will meet with you to plan the sale of your home. I provide Full Time, Full Service residential real estate services throughout Edison, Metuchen and Woodbridge.
The most effective means of Marketing homes for sale is this:
1. Accurate, aggressive positioning of your home in the market (effective pricing, staging and promoting)
2. Exposing your home to as many prospective buyers as possible (MLS and the Buyers)
3. Aggressively Marketing your home where the buyers are looking: internet sites including this site, Realtor.com (Showcase), Yahoo! Real Estate, Trulia and many more. Real estate Buyers go to the internet FIRST (about 80% of Buyers)..and then they call a Realtor®. Your home must be accessible to the Buyers. And they must be able to contact a Realtor®..instantly. Other media which I use to promote and sell my clients' homes: newspapers, magazines, direct mail, email, Open Houses and networking, Seller participation.
4. Continual contact and updates. I DO provide regular updates to you, as we market your home (weekly, twice weekly, etc.) We'll determine the best way for us to communicate (telephone, in-person, email, fax)...the alternative is often referred to as a "Houdini Agent"--list the property..then disappear.
So...quite a lot of information to consider...but just a sampling. The sale of a home is one of the most complicated and emotional undertakings you can experience. As an experienced Realtor®, I've encountered virtually every issue and problem that can arise during a transaction. I can put that experience to work for you.
If you're moving..and need to sell, give me a call. All information is strictly confidential.
Frank J Nicolato, CRS, e-PRO, QSC
Prudential New Jersey Properties
(732) 261-2569
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