House selling

[supton]

I don't think we're in a position to sell, but we certainly want to move. What ought we do / be prepared for before we talk to a realtor?

I figure, I don't want to spend a dime fixing my house, not unless if the ROI is there. From what little I've read, a realtor ought to know that, and won't recommend putting on new siding, new carpet, etc. However I know I need to fix some issues--but if the numbers don't work out then I have zero desire in fixing them, before or after talking to a realtor. I'm not addressing issues until I have favorable numbers to actually move. I'm guessing a realtor can look past issues and give me a price that I ought to expect, assuming I fix whatever issues they point out?

I have not pulled credit reports yet but I expect to find nothing. Similarly my credit has been high in the past, based upon what I've seen when I've gotten loans. No plans to get a new car and/or other debt. I do have a qualm about our credit cards; we religiously pay off each month but we do run about 30% of our income through them. While we don't "budget" we know what we spend and what we're willing to spend on a house to make ends meet.

I know I need to put a bunch of stuff in storage, and I need to come up with a set of criteria for what I want vs need in the next house. I've looked at local prices, average time on market. I know the rough price of the house I'd be looking at, roughly where I want to be, what my current mortgage is, and what I need to get for my house to make 20% down.

Am I missing anything else?

 

[dishdude]

Declutter, rent a storage unit if you have to. Paint neutral colors if the walls are a crazy color. Clean, clean, clean! Take care of any obvious deferred maintenance.

 

[69GTX]

Fix every little eye sore that needs something simple like paint, a screw, a dab of concrete, mortar or sealer, insulation, etc. It might take a few days to a few weeks but it will make a big difference.

 

[supton]

Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?

 

[NormanBuntz]

You don't want your home to fall into the category of a "handyman's special," so it pays to fix and spruce up many things and leave some things open to negotiation with the buyer. Good advice was given in the first two responses.

Good luck with the sale. Moving is a PITA.

 

[dishdude]

Originally Posted By: supton
Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?


You can interview Realtors before you do anything and ask what they would recommend you list it for and solicit their advice on what to do to show it. They'll pressure you to list it as is so they can get the listing but don't bite - wait until you've prepared it for sale to list.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

You need to look at it from a buyers perspective-an "average" buyer. Would you want to walk into a house and have to do a bunch of work right off the bat? Or is it reasonably turn-key as it is?

Your "zero desire" to fix things may make the house very difficult to sell without selling it to a flipper or at a price that's below market value. You are in competition with surrounding properties that are for sale-if the price and square footage are similar, and the other properties are in much better condition, then you're going to sit on the market for a very long time. Most people don't want to buy a new (to them) home and immediately start repairs and renovations.

It's a case for keeping a home maintained and in good cosmetic condition-when the day comes that it goes on the market it will be much easier to sell and for a much higher price. It's not hard to make any home appealing; keep in mind that most buyers form an opinion within the first minute of seeing a house. That's why curb appeal is so important. Once that initial impression has been made, it's very difficult to change it.

 

[AZjeff]

You should be able to get a close enough idea of what your property is worth on your own doing comps with local multi-lists, Zillow, etc. Why waste a realtor's time, that's what he'll do to get a value. You aren't going to change the value much doing fix-ups but the closer your house is to move-in ready the fewer objections and bargaining points to deal with.

Right now it sounds like you're kicking tires.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: supton
Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?


You can interview Realtors before you do anything and ask what they would recommend you list it for and solicit their advice on what to do to show it. They'll pressure you to list it as is so they can get the listing but don't bite - wait until you've prepared it for sale to list.


You might hire a bank appraiser to give you an accurate appraisal. The realtor may give you a number you want to hear to get you to list then a month latter tell you with few showings your price is set to high.

The number one piece of advice is to tell nothing about your personal situation, why you are moving, where your moving, how long you can wait to sell to the realtor. For example you say you have a job that starts in 2 weeks across the country, the prospective buyer will be told that your a seller that needs to sell immediately and will accept a low offer. So say nothing, keep it a business deal.

Beat down the commission to 5%.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: supton
Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?
You can interview Realtors before you do anything and ask what they would recommend you list it for and solicit their advice on what to do to show it. They'll pressure you to list it as is so they can get the listing but don't bite - wait until you've prepared it for sale to list.

I agree.

Interview few realtors to get some ideas of what are needed to fix/change and how much you can expect for your house after all those were done.

I sold my house year and a half ago without any cleaning/fixing interior. I only need to have termite damages repaired. The one who bought my house knew the area well, and they prepared to spend up to $300-350k to remodel the house to their liking, so they didn't care about 25-30 years old carpet.

I did look at the house after they had it done, it was totally different floor plan. Several walls had been removed, some new walls had been added. New wood floor in place of ceramic, new carpet ... $300k can do a lot of new things.

 

[Wolf359]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: supton
Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?


You can interview Realtors before you do anything and ask what they would recommend you list it for and solicit their advice on what to do to show it. They'll pressure you to list it as is so they can get the listing but don't bite - wait until you've prepared it for sale to list.


You might hire a bank appraiser to give you an accurate appraisal. The realtor may give you a number you want to hear to get you to list then a month latter tell you with few showings your price is set to high.

The number one piece of advice is to tell nothing about your personal situation, why you are moving, where your moving, how long you can wait to sell to the realtor. For example you say you have a job that starts in 2 weeks across the country, the prospective buyer will be told that your a seller that needs to sell immediately and will accept a low offer. So say nothing, keep it a business deal.

Beat down the commission to 5%.


I'm a real estate broker so I deal with appraisers all the time. In general, I think they're worthless when trying to determine the actual value of a home. They're basically hired by the banks to hit the numbers so that the bank knows that there's actually a house on a lot and not some empty lot. They're always working backwards to arrive at a number, they always know what the purchase price is ahead of time and work backward to justify the number. So they don't really have any clue what to price a property at because they only see sold properties. Plus they travel all over the place and might not be familiar with a particular neighborhood. A local realtor would probably have a better idea about the neighborhood. Standard advice would be to get quotes from 3 or more realtors. It won't cost you anything unlike paying for an appraiser. The reason you get at least 3 is that some realtors will just quote you a high price so you go with them and then they'll hope they can talk you into lowering your price later when it doesn't sell.

 

[Noey]

To make money you have to spend it.

If your house looks tired it won't sell. If you don't want to fix anything, you shouldn't expect anything. it's very simple: How determined are you to sell?

You can Zillow your house to get a sense of value, you can interview Realtors, but recall they're not magicians. What sells is desire, and it's in your interest to increase that desire in potential buyers, even if you don't have current desire yourself to do much of anything.

Ask the realtor what kinds of things you can do to increase desire.

 

[dishdude]

Also when you interview Realtors, look at their current listings. If they have 18-24 beautiful photos that make you want to go see them, sold!

If they have 3-4 taken with a cell phone, house is a mess, toilet seat is up...pass.

 

[supton]

I've been looking at Zillow, and I get the impression that, if my house had no cosmetic issues, it'd be around -35% of what I paid 11 years ago. I'm at 50% left on what I "paid", thus, after I pay out 6% to a realtor... I couldn't move (since the houses I'm looking at cost much more). That in a nutshell is my dilemma. I could fix it up, and still be at a loss. All the cosmetic issues I have, I have been staring at for years, and can continue to do so. So, in my mind, spending any money on "repairs" is money I won't recoup. I'd rather not bother.

Unless if I'm not reading the market properly. Zillow isn't the only game in town. It's just the only game I can look at.

I don't mind spending the money to fix it up, if the house would sell. If it's money well spent. Otherwise... I'd rather not. I made a poor decision in buying this place, and honestly, if I wait another 10 years, it'll be paid off, and the kids will have moved away. And I won't have to move.

 

[cashmoney]

It takes a lot of work and some $ investment to sell a home for a good price. If you want premium dollars for your house, it must be in great shape inside and out. You have to do the work to clean, declutter, and fix/repair any visible cosmetic issues and deferred maintenance on your current house to get maximum dollars on the sale. Houses in great shape sell fast for very close to asking price. Dirty, cluttered dogs sit on the market for months and almost never sell for anything near asking price.

 

[AZjeff]

Sorry to hear of your dilemma. We moved from Pa to Az 10 years ago and are in a similar hole maybe not as deep. Makes the most sense to stay put and let the market come back to you. By your estimates if you paid $200K you stand to lose $70K if you sell now. Ouch.

 

[daves87rs]

Maybe wait a bit longer....and fix it up a bit. If going to be there a little while, might as well make the house better to stare at...

I got lucky and bought at the end of the down market, and my house is worth more than double what I paid for it.I could upgrade or make some money, but I'm happy with the house and payment, so plan to stay a while.


Hope something comes up for you...

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: supton
Sure--but do I need to do that BEFORE getting a realtor?

What's the point in renting a storage unit only to find out that I can't get enough for my house to put the down payment on the next?


I'd do the obvious repairs before contacting a realtor, then bring the realtor in and get their suggestions. That's a pretty good tool to use to screen your broker. I know of one realtor that makes ridiculous lists of things that need to be done, others are very conservative. The bottom line is you can waste a lot of money over doing things.

Clean, uncluttered, a good roof, and no water stains are a real plus. The last house I sold went to the third person that looked at it, it was all of the above. The first two came back with a ridiculous punch list they were using to try and negotiate the price down. As I showed them the door I suggested they look for a new house. LOL

Good luck!

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Originally Posted By: supton
I don't mind spending the money to fix it up, if the house would sell. If it's money well spent. Otherwise... I'd rather not. I made a poor decision in buying this place, and honestly, if I wait another 10 years, it'll be paid off, and the kids will have moved away. And I won't have to move.


Then why not put in some sweat equity and get things fixed? There is nothing particularly difficult about doing some remodeling and most home repairs, and if you spend some time doing it, when this house is paid off you'll be in a much better position. Or you could continue to let the issues pile up, and hope they all magically go away in the future.

 

[Lapham3]

There's a big difference on doing 'some fixing' and what a lot of realtors are advising around me. I've seen contractors at properties often doing a big remodel for weeks-then the place goes on the market and sells-to be followed by weeks of contractors again. I've often seen the recently installed sinks/vanities/countertops, ect hauled out and replaced by something else again. Seems a big waste and stupid to do. I would fix anything that needs fixing and paint neutral and that's about it.