Selling Your Home During A Recession

An economic downturn or a recession is just a normal part of life that one should live with. It may affect your investments and business dealings but instead of worrying about it, things can be done to make a recession work to your advantage. House selling during a recession may require more work than when the market is at its peak. However, there are still plenty of people out there who need homes to live in and houses to provide for their families. Here are some suggestions on how to sell your house during a recession period. Let these tried and tested strategies help you rise up to the challenge and stand strong even when the real estate market is on a downward spin.

IMPROVE YOUR HOUSE APPEARANCE

Does the house look attractive enough for buyers to call you and schedule an appointment? Perhaps you need to improve the curb appeal of your house as well as its interior design. Plant flowers, cut grass and paint the fence. Likewise, renovate the interior if the home needs reworking. Check the kitchen and bathroom and make all necessary repairs. Clean the house, fix it, redesign it and make it look very attractive for buyers. Doing these things is absolutely essential in selling a home at a good price.

DO A MARKET RESEARCH

Don’t expect people to call you when your house is priced to high. When home buyers shop for houses, they usually look at several properties and yours may be crossed out of the list if your house is priced expensively. Thus, knowing what the current market rate is an advantage as well as pricing your house within the range that the market dictates.

INCREASE THE COMMISSION OF YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT

This is a common trick that investors usually do when a particular property has been sitting in the market for too long. Instead of lowering the price of the house, investors would rather increase the spread of their real estate agents. You just might be surprised at how this can quickly sell your house.

INCLUDE FREE ITEMS WITH THE HOUSE

You can perhaps include a large flat screen TV with your house for sale or a golf cart when the house is near a golf course. You can also include a recreational vehicle, boat or motorcycle. What item do you think you have that you can add as a freebie to your house that’s for sale? Sell a house with something of great value so that buyers will be motivated to buy the property from you.

ADVERTISE! ADVERTISE!

You can run ads in the papers, install a very visible “For Sale” sign in the front yard, distribute flyers, advertise the property in social networking sites and stage an open house. Market the property well and place ads that stand out in order to sell your house. Be creative in your sales pitch. Instead of writing “house for sale”, write instead “Hansel and Gretel Cottage” or “Shabby Chic Elegance in the City”.

A recession is not the time to be fearful of the real estate market but to be more creative in coming up with ways to sell your house. Even with a recession, people will always have the need to have a home to live in. Job relocation, sudden divorce, death in the family and many other factors can bring about a home buyer. So be imaginative in selling a home. Improve the house, offer additional benefits to your real estate agent and include valuable items in the sale. Selling your home during a recession can be done with creativity, perseverance and dedication.

Selling a home would seem to be a scary and voluminous process if you’re doing it for the first time. However, you’re opened to multiple options that will help you to sale at a better rate. Before you select the best option for you, decide what is important in the sale. Is it more important to get a higher price or to sell as quickly as possible; do you want control of the sale, or do you want someone else to handle the details; how much money can you afford to pay to locate a buyer?

This report is designed to help you evaluate your options, and make the best selection based on your individual needs and desires. It will provide you with tips for a faster sale, and show you the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative.

You should spend time reading this entire report, then sit down with any other decision makers to decide your best course of action. Remember, the only way to get your house sold is to start the process.

REASONS YOU MAY NEED TO SELL FAST

There are a variety of reasons that homeowners may require a quick sale of their home. You may have just found your “dream home” and you want to move fast before someone else snatches it away. Finding a buyer is hard and you don’t really want to bother with all those details.

Your boss may have decided that you must move to another location and it’s either: live out of a suitcase or sell your current home to buy another.

Another reason could be that home repairs are getting the best of you and you just can’t keep up with them all. Natural disasters are not always fully covered by insurance and those out-of-pocket expenses are eating you alive.

Do any of these sound familiar? If so, then it is time to follow through on your decision to sell. This report will help you make an informed decision.

TIPS FOR A QUICK SALE

Take a step back and look  at your house from your  buyers’ perspective. What do you see? Is it appealing?  Would you have bought  this house if it looked like  this when you were buying?  Walk across the street and look at your house. Is it attractive? Will buyers race to set an appointment to see the house, or race to get away?

The point is to make your house as appealing as possible. Fix it, paint it, clean it. Here are some tips to consider:

1. Remove clutter. You want your house to appear as spacious as possible. The more clutter, the less spacious it appears.
2. Are you afraid of your closets? Well, grab some trash bags, a few boxes, and then clean them out. Use a rummage sale, used clothing  store, community donation center, resale shop, or just take stuff to the dump if it is no longer usable. You can organize  your  closets  in  such a way that they  appear roomy by limiting  the amount of clothing on the rods.
3. Has the floor of your garage seen the light of day recently? If not, then it is time to do some serious hanging up, throwing out, and rearranging.
4. Is there a side to your house that seems to collect stuff? If so, get rid of it. Make your entire yard a pleasant scene.
5. Make sure your house is clean and organized before  each showing to potential buyers. You’ll be amazed at all the stains, fingerprints, pet hair, and dust that have accumulated over the years. Have your entire house professionally cleaned. At the very least, have the carpets steam cleaned.
6. Repair broken items so they do not become a concern for your prospective buyers.
7. Remove personal items from walls and  tables  as  these block  buyers from  seeing your home as their future home.
8. Be sure that children’s rooms are kept neat and tidy. Remove posters of the walls, keep the beds made, closets cleaned, clothes in the hamper, and the floor clear with nothing lying around.