Mar. 9, 2008 - Should I advertise in this market?

"Should I advertise in this market?"

Absolutely! Contrary to what the media has to say, HOMES ARE SELLING!

Okay, the number may be down considerably from previous years, but sales are NOT at a standstill. Families are still in need of good homes in good communities and may not have the luxury of waiting for the market.

Back in 1990, at the peak of the last housing boom, my wife (Melinda) and I found ourselves in a 2 bedroom town home with 4 children! Two kids in one room and two babies in our room...We were waiting for the market to change, but actually our sanity would have taken a turn for the worse much quicker than our wallets. So we took the plunge and guess what? The home we purchased dropped in value 4 months later, by $65,000!

I recall the reaction I had from friends and family... "wow you lost a bundle on that house!"  My standard response: "We bought the house to have a place to live in; a community in which to raise our children... I could afford  the house when I purchased it and even with a decrease of equity I could still afford the house..."

Guess what.. 14 years later we sold that home and made $400,000 from the proceeds of the sale..

If you are serious about selling your home... the best advice is to push forward and keep the home in front of the buying audience.  You can do this in a multitude of ways and without spending a great deal of money.

Marketing areas to focus on:

The internet -  Last year NAR stated that  84% of the home shoppers started their home search process on the web. So you need to be there! Show a lot of pictures and not just on one website.

SearchHomesOnTV.com - creates a 40 second video commercial, launches it on National TV and then posts it on 28 web portals; this is a huge amount of visibility! The videos remain on the web until you have sold the property. Take advantage of SHOTV's March Madness special: just $199 and a posting on the site is free.

Classified Ads: Do not invest at this time; it's just too costly and requires continuous ads over long periods to be effective (open house promotion is the exception).   

 Get a decent LAWN sign -  the red and white Home Depot models just do not cut it.. you need one that tells the world that your home is for sale, display a website address with an ID  to view the home details and a contact phone number that didn't wash off with the last rain.

Open Houses - You do need to do this and you need to promote it on the web and now's the time to place the classified ad.. consumers do shop for the next open house dates and don't forget to put out some Open House signs!

Owner Financing - If you have  equity available, consider taking back a portion of the sale price in the form of a loan to the buyer, or even doing a lease option program.

Financing - Talk with some mortgage reps... many are very happy to assist you in many ways to help sell your home. Why should they  care? They are hopeful to have an opportunity to handle the mortgage for your  prospective buyer. Also see if they have a special financing options that you can promote.

Good Selling!

John Giaimo
President
www.SearchHomesOnTV.com
John@SearchHomesOnTV.com