Selling Tucson Real Estate in a Falling Market

Selling real estate in a falling market can be a stressful situation if you are unaware of what the market can bring. A falling market can also be described as softening, slowing down, depressed, or slumping. During this time, sellers continue to sell, and buyers continue to purchase homes. The only thing that differs during this time is the approach you must take to be a seller. The real estate agent and seller must adjust to the market appropriately to conform and sell your home for top dollar.

Hammering a For Sale sign in front of your home will no longer do the trick, nor will placing your listing in the MLS. Even though these two items are viable, you must reach beyond the standard and make your home stand out from the rest.

Make sure your home is ready to sell.

Interior this could involve de-cluttering, patching holes, painting, new carpeting, etc. Do anything that will make your home look airy and clean for your new potential home owners. Remove as many of your personal belongings as possible. Clean curtains, fluff pillows, and make sure everything is in its proper place.

Fixing home repairs is also going to make your home sell easier. Here are a few minimal cost quick fixes that will get you the biggest rate on your return:

Fix Floors

If you have carpeting covering your nice hardwood floors, pay to get the carpet pulled up and floors refinished. A lot of the times buyers lose potential money from keeping their nice floors hidden. Dealing with carpeting? If your carpet is not up to par, replace it with a tan or light neutral tone as it will appeal to more buyers. Ceramic tiles if chipped or cracked should also be replaced; and grout be cleaned.

Paint walls and ceilings

When a buyer first enters your home, they look around at the walls, and then up at the ceiling. They are actually looking for leaky roofs and cracks, but often times they will find a stained ceiling in need of paint. With minimal costs, you can avoid this embarrassment and keep your buyers interested in your home. If you have large cracks on your walls or ceiling, use fiberglass tape, joint compound, and sand smooth before you paint.

Kitchen Fixes and Improvements

New appliances for the kitchen can break the bank, but the turn over for purchasing them is often times higher than their cost. In fact, Remodeling Magazine boasts that nearly most remodels return at least 100%. However, high end kitchens often times do not provide as much return as mid range or minor kitchen remodel. In normal scenarios, not only can a newly updated kitchen bring more appeal to a home, it also brings in more potential to have multiple offers.

The cheapest alternative to remodel your cabinets is with resurfacing. This is where you attach a thin veneer to the surface of the cabinets and replace cabinet doors and hardware. If you have painted cabinets, a fresh coat of paint and new hardware will do the trick.

Counter tops and sinks/faucets are the icing on the cake. Granite counter tops are not an absolute necessity, but using a simple laminate can freshen up a kitchens look at a lower cost. New faucets and new sinks are the icing on the cake.

Bathrooms

Bottom line, bathrooms are a selling point. New fixtures, floors, and lighting can fix up a bathroom with little cost.

Exterior of the home

On the exterior, you will want to have a freshly cleaned, mowed lawn, weeds removed, clutter removed, etc. If needed, paint the exterior, lay out potted plants to give your home extra curb appeal. Also patch cement cracks in the sidewalks, resurface asphalt driveways, replace doorknobs, fix and/or paint fences, and caulk windows and doors.

Don’t forget to take care of the backyard! Setting up your home to make it look inviting and functional will impress buyers and allow them to picture their future in your home.

Selling with Pets

If you have pets in the home, make sure you can keep them safe and out of the way while visitors are coming through. If you have a scheduled open house, placing large dogs in kennels off the property is going to appeal more to your buyer than having it locked up in the back yard. Also, remove any odors, fill any holes, etc. Your potential buyer should not know you have a pet at all.

Hiring a stager for finishing touches

If you want to take it a step further, hiring a professional stager will be sure to set you out from the rest. They go beyond the cleaning and de-cluttering, and have a magical knack to add focus to your homes best features.

Having your home clean and ready to sell is going to set you out from the rest and also set you up for marketing your home to potential buyers. Marketing your home is your biggest asset when it comes to selling your property.

> Marketing your home to sell in a slow market