Home > Home Selling > My Secrets to Selling in 30 days

It is not a secret that selling in today's market if you live in "most" of America, this task will be a challenge. Some markets are tougher than others. I sold my rental property over two years ago in yet another tough market - Norman, Oklahoma. But my objective was clear: to get this condo SOLD - once and for all and put it on a page of my history book. Like most sellers today, the odds against my success were high. I would not be telling the truth if I didn't mention that yes, I was a little fearful with my market and of my competitors. Buyers of condominiums are not readily available and it in February that I had put my property on the market: the timing factor.

If you knew Norman, Oklahoma at all, it is a university town. My alma mater - the University of Oklahoma. The Spring semester had already started and most students move back home in the Summer until school starts back in the Fall. So, clearly I had some time factor stacked against my sale. I employed the best Realtor® in Norman, Patrick Moore. Patrick understands the college town real estate. He is not a pushy salesperson and he is very respectful of my opinions (if you know me by now, you know I have too many!). Together, Patrick, my husband and I did the impossible: Sold this condo in 30 days when others took over 180 days.

Being a Realtor® myself and understanding what it needs to sell, I hope I had made my experience for my Norman Realtor® an easy task. At least he didn't need to convince me of what it takes in order to sell it.

I took 4 important steps, which I believe made turn out to be an outcome I want:

Remodeling:

After 4 years of renting, it was clear that the property was not in its best shape. I did what other Sellers did not want to do: pour in more money into this thing you no longer want to own. I did not want to give Buyers any chance to say "I like this, but......" I DON'T believe in "ifs and buts". So, I put in new tiles to replace the laminate flooring in the kitchen and bathrooms. Brand new carpet to replace old wooden parquet floors the rest of the property. I repainted the entire condo with a coat of fresh new paint. Just with these major changes, the property already scream "Buy me, buy me" when compared to my competitors.

You see, my understanding of my objective is very clear. I give no reason for buyers not to make a "slam dunk" decision. I study my competition and I make sure I come out the top of the list. With Patrick's help, we went to see 4 other properties that afternoon - researching what they are asking with what are featured in the property.

Staging:

Screaming "Buy me, buy me" is not enough for a tough over-achiever like me. I honestly didn't think it needed staging given the condition of my property based on its price (which I will discuss later) when it was stacked against the competition. But I needed to help the buyer make a no-brainer decision. So, I staged it. Yes, it was the only staged property among those available. I believe that Staging is the cream of the crop. In some markets and at some price points, they are not an option. You MUST stage them. Very successfully, this vacant cold condo looks homely and it was the key for any parents who would want to purchase a cozy "home away from home" for their child. I understand this mentality.

Pricing:

All the above would not be successful had I not priced it correctly. Fortunately, or unfortunately (however you want to look at it), when I made the decision to re-carpet, re-tile and re-paint, I did not figure the cost of these maintenance into my equation. Why Did I Not? How could I? That's what most Sellers reactions would be. However, being a Realtor® myself, I understand how Buyers make the decision call. When you buy, you would almost expect carpet, flooring and paint on the walls unless it's a rehab property. If the conditions were not good, as a Seller, you would almost always get penalized for them. If they were acceptable conditions, then okay. However, if they were fresh and newly installed, it just almost makes them feel good about their purchase.

Like I had mentioned before, my objective is clear. To sell this property to the first buyer that walks in. I give no reason not to make this no-brainer decision. I priced it $3,000 less than my next competitor, who didn't have new flooring and new paint. I priced it $6,000 less than my "similar" competitor who had new flooring. In terms of percentage, this $3,000 is almost 8% less. However to me, having to risk that $3,000 "loss" upfront was very little when compared to my property sitting in the market for over 6 months (my mortgage payment would be more than $3,000).

So, after the remodelling, staging and pricing, I let my Realtor® do his duty - to sell it for me. True enough, I received a phone call from him 3 weeks after we went on the market and an offer came in shortly after. I also want to mention that I got an offer $1,000 less than listing price. Not bad. Not bad at all.

I believe 4 crucial steps contributed to my phenomenal success: Placing the property at the top of the market condition, staging it to place it over the top, pricing it attractively to help the buyer make the decision. The final and most important step is that I have a very competent Realtor® who understands his market and provided me with all necessary information to make an informed decision. After all, like it or not, Realtors® are only facilitators to the transaction. The ultimate decision: success or not lies in the hands of the Seller ie me. Only I can control the outcome of my sale and I exercised it.

Well, after reading this blog, there is no secret at all to selling in 30 days when others took over 180. The hard fact to swallow is that the market is more competitive and it takes much more to sell. The only real secret is if you, the Seller wants to accept the reality of the market. (I meant this is a humility voice).

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