7 Deadly and Expensive Mistakes Commonly made by Home Sellers

Common and Deadly Mistakes made by Home Sellers
Selling your home is a major event with significant consequences, and should be considered carefully before undertaking the process to avoid heartburn and a sale at less than possible price.
If you want to give yourself that suffering, then
1. Don`t do an Exit Plan
An exit plan is a thorough examination of the probable sale outcome of your property which flows through to your financial options in the next property move, whether that be a downsizing, upsizing or a geographic location change.

Failure to do so can result in placing a property on the market with unrealistic expectations with a “wish” list price allowing purchase of a property with the desired features in the desired location. This may be something that is not possible, and can be very stressful and costly if only found out during a lengthy and protracted sales process.

It can result in refusing what is a very reasonable offer on the basis it doesn`t get you what you want, but what you want and what is feasible may well be very different – be thorough in examining assessments put to you, don`t just accept what you want to hear. If a price put to you seems high and out of kilter with other assesments, it is probably too high – ask how such a figure could be gained given the lack of supporting evidence.

2. Don`t prepare the property for sale
Appearance is critical and it would be foolish to ignore this when selling your home.
You may not be able to change the location or floor plan, but you generally can do a lot to improve the appearance. Allow the buyers to imagine themselves living in your home. The decision to buy is based on emotion not logic.
Try to present as a well cared for home with no glaring problems – first impressions are paramount. The key matters to address are:
(a) De-clutter
This doesn`t mean just tidy up a bit. It means, for instance, clearing all kitchen benches and leaving them that way, thinning out walk in robes and cupboards by boxing little worn clothes and shoes to create space. Furniture is another issue – think back to display homes where there is an illusion of space. Remove bulky items giving the cluttered look.
De-personalise where possible. Put away family photos and knick knacks that mean a lot to you but are really other people`s rubbish. You need to be ruthless.
(b) Tidy up the garden
This is the biggie – get out and weed those gardens, trim branches and plants from rear windows to let more light into the house, mow the lawns and trim the edges. Check that the garden beds do not cover any brick weep holes or cover any timber cladding – Building and Pest inspectors almost have a coronary over such occurrences as it leads to possible termite invasions. Most gardens of older homes will have or have had termite activity, so protection of the house is critical.
Ensure that all pavers are gurnied to clear mould and dirt – this is a clear indication of lack of light and sun or just lack of care, both of which resonate with buyers.
( c) Odd jobs time
Get rid of all those little jobs you were saving for that spare day. This must be done before the buyers start coming through. Fix that broken tile, oil the doors, get a glazier to replace the cracked glass, ensure flywire screens don`t have any tears or holes and all screen doors slide easily.



( d) Paint or not to paint?
Don`t repaint the entire house unless it really needs it, but be prepared to do ceilings or smaller rooms. Get rid of any peeling paint to gutters, doors or window surrounds.
(e) Clean as never before
Clean windows inside and out, have the shower, bath, taps and floors sparkling. Make sure ceiling fans are cleaned, and the house exterior should be checked for a house wash possibility. Scratched floor boards may need to be repolished, and grout cleaning will often bring up a bathroom.
(f) A one off check
Take a backward step and try to view the property through the eyes of a buyer. Maybe some changed light fittings, or light fittings rather than a bare globe at minimal cost would help, painting that orange bedroom where you let the teenager have his/her choice may add benefit at minimal cost.
And lastly, make sure that tidiness is maintained throughout the sale process. Remember, inspections can occur at short notice - people often come up from Brisbane for the weekend to look at a choice, it doesn`t work-out, they need to look at another area, the calls can come to inspect at short notice, a good agent will listen and direct and try to strike “whilst the iron is hot”.

3. Don`t take any notice of a reasonable sale price expectation and “go for broke”
Pricing needs to position the property to obtain a premium price and allow for the inevitable “horse trading” – nobody believes anymore in paying list price, but pushing this to too high levels is asking for trouble. Buyers stay away in droves, and the longer on the market, the lower the price is an all too true maxim.
The first step most sellers take is to call in agent to carry out an appraisal, which should be backed by a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) comparing your property with similar properties in a recent time frame. Real Estate Agents are not valuers, so base their estimates on market activity and a feel for the prevailing market trends
The quality and experience of the agent are key factors in arriving at a competent and accurate CMA. Whether the agent has a full license or just a sales certificate and the length of time in the industry plus market share are factors when considering the veracity of an appraisal produced by your agent.

Check closely the content of any CMA – how relevant is it, how thorough has the agent been? The outcome should be a reasonably high degree of probability of achievement of the predicted sales price range
Beware that it is known for agents to propose a price to meet the buyers expectations and in effect “buy” a possible listing. This is known in the motor vehicle trade as “high balling” on a trade in to ensure the car sales person has the last negotiating opportunity.
A recommended alternative course of action is to appoint a sworn valuer to carry out a price review. Valuers are professionally accredited and value according to a strict process, but even they will be subject to variation as a valuer only looks at past activity and construction costs, and does not have a feel for possible future trends. This valuation, of course, comes at a not unsubstantial cost.
The true “worth” will only be determined upon the result of an actual sale, so for future planning, a somewhat conservative approach is required.
A list price is usually set with some “reach” and “give” for negotiating, but pitching this too high is fraught with danger as buyers are very aware of pricing, leaving it alone even with the best of marketing campaigns. As a result, the industry often sees the downward spiral of prices with the seller always being pitched just above where the market appears to be.



4. Don`t list exclusively with one agent
There is a school of thought that believes by listing with a range of agencies on an open basis that you are trawling the entire market with a huge number of agents working for you to the best result. In fact, the reverse is the case.

From the sellers point of view, it is important for the execution of marketing strategies that one agency controls the message to buyers. Nothing indicates distress to buyers more than a plethora of signs and different sale messages and considerably weakens your negotiating position. Listing exclusively does not prevent other agents bringing buyers to the property.

Most agents will conjunct”, ie, share commission on an equitable basis, which means an exclusive listing can still have the whole real estate community working for you but with control of strategies by one party to the seller`s benefit. The seller does need to ensure the agent of choice will conjunct on an equitable basis, usually regarded as a 50:50 or 60:40 split. Some agencies do not reciprocate at these percentage levels, or conjunct at all, to the detriment of the seller as other agents find the effort just not worth the reward.
Virtually all the successful agents, successful because they sell more properties than average, which is who you want working for you, don`t normally handle open listings. Most are commission only sales people being paid on success, and time spent can be lost as agents are not aware of the status of the sale and it can be sold through another agent whilst still under negotiation. As time is money, sellers will appreciate why busy and successful agents may bypass the opportunity to open list.
The relationship between the agent and the seller is a partnership, working together to maximize the sale price. It is usually not possible to have a strong relationship with a range of agents to the benefit of the seller with a number of agents involved and conflicting interests.

Under some circumstances, a joint exclusive is a very workable proposition, whereby two agents with different perspectives and buyer reach may bring complementary skills to the process. Most agents will work together on a shared commission basis, but it is critical sellers explore agent/agency relationships to ensure the entire real estate community is working effectively on their behalf.

5. Don`t employ all the marketing tools to reach buyers
There are actually some sellers who say they do not want a For Sale sign erected outside the property, presumably because they don`t want neighbours or friends to know. It is very difficult to sell a secret.

For Sale signs, particularly on the Sunshine Coast, are an important tool as people moving to the area often drive around areas they like and ring up based on signs. Floor plans are also important, and can be drawn up for minimal cost – Melbourne and Sydney buyers in particular are amazed when told that floor plans are not available

The following pie chart depicts where buyers come from according to recent Australian analysis.














Various agencies have different policies according to charges and provided services, and these policies may vary within the one franchise depending on office location. Such matters are for discussion between the seller and the various parties, but assessment should relate to how effectively these may be deployed.
For instance, an agent may say he will provide free press advertising, when it is a minute ad , one of twenty to a page, compared to a quarter page colour pictorial with clearly more buyer reach,and impact – this is particularly so for a classy or prestigious property, as such a small ad possibly right next door to a first home buyer property just does not do the property justice.

6. Don`t Seriously consider an Early First Offer not far off List Price.
The first thought is that ”I have listed it too cheap” and a better offer is just around the corner. The byways of real estate history are littered with tales of sellers who desperately wished they could turn back the clocks of time to take advantage of that offer.

The key to an assessment of any offer is measurement against the original appraisal which should be designed to give a realistic expectation. Without any benchmark, how can any realistic comparison be made? This offer may well be the “dream deal”, but because it was the first, or an early deal and not compared to a realistic outcome, was not considered in the correct light.

This is another example of how critical a realistic assessment is made originally – you do not want to build up three months history to realise the correct selling price range after you have lost all the initial buyers – the most important time is the first 30 days!
This approach is particularly dangerous in a changing market where the end result may be a continually downward spiral chasing receding prices. Alternatively, in a rising market, it may be the best decision. The relationship between the seller and the agent is pivotal here – with an agent who has proven ability to read the market and buyers and has displayed a partnership approach where the seller`s interests are paramount, a decision on such pressing matter can be made so much easier.

7. Don`t take a Commercial Approach to Negotiations

A common failing is for sellers to take all matters personally. Comments such as “they are trying to steal this house at that price”, “what do you mean the bathrooms need renovating”, “my colour scheme is not disaster” and “ I will not pay for that screen door to be fixed as part of the price”

This can lead to personal prejudices and lack of a clear head. Keep in mind the end objective. Who cares if the buyers think they have a great deal, as long as you are satisfied you have met your objectives and received a fair price?

Aim to win the war and lose the occasional battle. If the seller has employed the right agent in the first place, he/she will be an experienced negotiator and be well placed to advise on each twist and turn.