Robin Joy Savage is retired now and living the good life.
When you are ready to sell your home, and are thinking of setting up your day-to-day life somewhere else, there is a lot to consider! As someone who has moved many times during her life (as is typical of a military family), I know what you are going through – the excitement and the worries that can come with uprooting.
PREPARATION:
The best thing you can do to list your home is to give it a fresh coat of paint and make it seem open and airy by moving out everything that you don’t need or doesn’t help to merchandise the space. This means that extra framed photos, most everything on your kitchen and bath countertops and nightstands, extra clothes in the closet and more should be moved out prior to listing. The goal is to make your home the most attractive it can be. Outside, landscaping should be neatened, surfaces pressure-washed, and the lawn mowed and detailed. Luckily, a little polish and curb appeal is about all you need to do. We need to provide potential buyers with a neutral, polished palette so they can envision how they are going to live there.
PRICING:
Yes, pricing is a critical component of marketing! The right price will have buyers flocking to your home to see it in-person whereas if we come in too high, the market usually responds by overlooking or disregarding it.
PHOTOGRAPHY:
According to the National Association of REALTORS, 92% of buyers search for properties online. Therefore, you should invest in professional HD photography to interest buyers to seeing your home in person.
MARKETING:
Make sure your real estate company has strong marketing capabilities, with their marketing plan and savvy with regards to print marketing, digital, advertising, and social media. i
Print Marketing – Make sure they can create an eye-catching house flyer, highlighting your home’s best features with special feature cards, and send out either a just listed card or open house invitation to the neighbors (more on open houses below!)
Online Marketing – Make sure that the real estate firm has a network of associates in Europe, North America, and around the world to market your properties. Make sure that the real estate firm will employ a comprehensive online listing distribution strategy featuring websites such as realtor.com, green-acres.com, french-property.com, NYT.com, IHT.com, Openhouse.com, Trulia.com, Frontdoor.com and more!
Open Houses – The strategy that works best is to list the home on Thursday with an open house that weekend. That way will generate the most excitement and garner the most potential buyers through the Open House.