Get Real: Ready to sell?

Posted by Beth Alois on May 7, 2014

You have decided to sell your home. If you are the average 21^st Century homeowner, you have been searching the internet for months looking at real estate activity in your community. You have an idea of what similar homes are listed for. If there have been sales, you have figured out the ratio of listing price to actual sale price.

As you do your online searches you have found yourself bombarded by ads for companies that list an estimate of the value of your home. These estimates are based on proprietary algorithms (that means we can’t know how they do their math). On closer investigation, you probably realize that these algorithms aren’t particularly accurate for the Brandywine Valley real estate market. They appear to be based in part on the public assessed value of the property. In many parts of the country assessed value and market value are the same; however, they are not the same figure in our marketplace. This likely adds to the skewed results we see on these websites.

So you want to sell and you still need to know what your home is worth. This is the first time your Realtor can help you. As the local market expert who has visited many of the homes you have seen on the internet, your agent can give you a fairly accurate range for the value of your home. Your agent will know what marketplace you are competing in; that is usually the local school district in the Brandywine Valley, but your agent knows how to refine the search to get the most useful comparable properties.

Value will also depend in a significant way on the location and condition of your home, not just the listing and sale prices of nearby homes.

In the current marketplace, in which buyers are very demanding, you cannot underestimate the impact condition has on the value of a home. The range of values your realtor suggests will take into consideration your willingness to prepare your home for the market. Your realtor will advise you on what routine maintenance, upgrades and staging you will need to do in order to attract the highest offer. Be honest with your agent about how much you are willing to do to the home. For example, if you have a leaky roof and are not willing to repair or replace it before listing the house, your agent will recommend a lower sales price than if you are willing to address the problem before the house goes on the market. This means you can’t expect the same price as your neighbor’s home with its new roof.

Your agent will give you a comparative market analysis that lists comparable properties. This analysis explains how the agent came up with the recommended price range. As the consumer, ask as many questions as you want to feel confident that you understand your agent’s thinking. Remember, you and your Realtor want the same thing: to sell your home at highest price possible. It is you agent’s job to help you find the right price to position your home to sell.

Next month we will talk about what you agents does for you once you have determined price.

* Beth Alois and Jim DeFrank can be reached at 610-388-3700, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Fox & Roach Realtors, Chadds Ford.