Here are some more tips for home sellers – whether you are selling your Lake Wallenpaupack home, Pike County, Wayne County – it matters not; these tips are for any market. Welcome to this June 3 edition of 2Tips4-2sDay (Two Tips for Tuesday).
- SELLING BONUS vs. BUYER INCENTIVES
I’ve had more than one seller ask which would get a quick sale – a bonus to the selling agent, or some sort of buyer incentive. While I certainly would love some extra money in my paycheck, I suggest offering a buyer’s incentive.
Many of today’s buyers are scouring the Internet themselves and contact an agent when they’re ready to make a formal move on the property. Buyers frankly could care less if an agent is going to earn a bonus on a sale; what matters to buyers is their own bottom line. Incentives that may get a savvy seller with lots of competition from “FOR SALE” to “SOLD” include:
- Home warranty
- Paying some of the buyer’s closing costs
- Renting a boat slip for the season
- Covering the capital improvement fee
- Paying the first year’s association dues
No, this isn’t a guarantee – but my opinion is that it will lead to a sale quicker than a bonus to the selling agent.
- HAVE YOUR OWN HOME INSPECTION There are two areas during the home sale process that set everyone on pins & needles and can make or break the deal: the home inspection, and appraisal. One of those situations can be diffused early with a pre-inspection.
Having a pre-inspection will alert you to potential problems, or it can put your mind at ease, depending on the outcome. Naturally, the buyers will still retain the right to have their own inspection (and they should do so), but if you already know what issues may arise, you can head them off at the pass. You can either repair the issues yourself, or have an estimate of repair on hand when the buyer says “Ummm, this came up in the inspections…”
- JUST ONE MORE THING – ABOUT APPRAISALS….
Like my hero, Lt. Columbo, I have to add one more thing. Consider paying the $350 or so to have an appraisal. While a CMA provided by a real estate agent may very well be an accurate indication of the value of your home, an appraisal is what the mortgage company will stand by. Nothing is more heartbreaking than to get past the initial negotiations and home inspections only to have the home come up short at the appraisal. Knowing ahead of time can save aggravation and heartache.Be advised, appraisals are technically only good for the day they are written; but I’ll stick my neck out and say if you already have an appraisal that’s more than three to six months old, consider it null and void and irrelevant to the current market.
Read more 2Tips4-2sDay here!
Filed under: Home Sellers, Tuesday Tips Tagged: | appraisal, buyer incentive, home inspection, real estate, selling home
Excellent post.
I think offering something to the selling agent is a local issue. I think it helps ONLY when inventory is extremely high and seller’s agents commissions have been damaged. In our area, discounters have really messed with commissions. Since the listing agent has control over coops – the listing side remains somewhat intact, but people who deal with buyers are being chucked to the curb with pocket change. Almost ALL of the reductions came out of the selling side. When a major league broker in CT heard what we were getting – he asked me why I even bothered. IF we had high inventory (we don’t) – a bonus would be a VERY tasty carrot to get many more people through the door – FAST.
None of us likes to think this way, but when the selling side has been so badly beaten up – they are looking for whatever they can get.
For any other situation, I think your approach is better.
Sorry, pushed that send too fast..I really like the home warranty and helping with closing costs. I find closing costs are a big deal these days.
Ruthmarie, thanks for the comment. I do agree that in certain circumstances, a seller bonus is definitely in order.
In this area, I think it is generally the custom to split the total commission evenly between the selling and listing side, so if one side takes a hit, so does the other…there is one office that is notorious for keeping a larger chunk of the commission but most of the time, both sides negotiate so that everyone comes away somewhat happy.
Or, at least, that’s how we do it in my office – not sure how other offices work together (or against each other…) My main goal is to get the property sold….