If you live in a house in a neighborhood that has a lot of foreclosures you will appreciate this. As I have been showing homes to clients in the Southwest Florida market I have become more embarrassed by what I am seeing. Where is the Home Owners Association management in this process? I am seeing lawns and driveways overcome by weeds and un kept landscaping. Not only is this a severe eye sore for potential buyers it becomes a natural habitat for critters like snakes and even the occasion gator.

If you are a home owner and you are paying your HOA dues you need to get involved. Just the comments my potential home buyers are making, not only on the property that I am showing but also the neighborhood in general puts a pit in my stomach. You have all of these hardworking home owners (and renters) taking care of their lawns and then you have sporadic patches of overgrown jungles with homes that have broken windows.

I was talking to a couple a few days ago and I think the wise man who happens to teach high school here in Lee County said it best. He told me that he mows his neighbor’s yard, which has been foreclosed on, just so that he does not have to look at the overgrown jungle.

I think that the HOA needs to take some ownership and even charge the bank back for lawn maintenance. Unkempt properties not only invite critters into the yards but also squatters which I know I have written about in the past. Until we are able to sell through these foreclosed and short sale properties we need to ensure our neighborhoods don’t look like Somalia. We will never be able to sell this look to a potential client. In fact, if a client is looking at a property that is overgrown with weeds the client sees dollar signs.

I know that it is unfair to the “good” folks out there that do take care of their own property and lawns. However, until ownership is taken by someone that property will continue to sit vacant and when the offer does come in, it will drag your property value down even further. Take the 20 minutes; it is an investment in your property value.

If you are selling your home as a traditional resale be prepared. The competition is stronger than ever before, especially for a traditional home sale. The competition is made up of “short-sales” and foreclosures. Although, the inventory of these distressed properties are diminishing at a steady rate they are still in competition with traditional home sales and will be for at least the next year.  

So you need to sell your home or you want to sell and are not able to wait. A comprehensive marketing plan is the key to successfully selling a home during the current buyers market. There are two things that sell a home in today’s real estate market place. The first is price and the second is value.

A home that is priced right means the property is priced at the current market. Home owners always want to get the most out of the property; however you need to understand that in order to actually sell a property in 79% of the transactions it must appraise for the contract amount. If it does not appraise for the contract amount, the seller or buyer must come out of pocket for the difference. If that does not happen the sale of that property won’t close because the bank will not loan more than the appraised value amount and in some cases only 75% - 80% of the home appraised value.

The second element is obtaining value to potential buyers. To attract potential buyers you need a robust marketing strategy. This strategy needs to include at minimum a virtual tour and property website. The virtual tour allows potential home buyers to see the property in greater detail in a 2 – 3 minute tour. My virtual tours are syndicated with ten of the top Real Estate sales websites (Realtor.com, Zillow.com, Trulia.com, etc.) and get a an average of 400 views per week, which is forty times more views than they get on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Additionally property websites allows potential buyers to see up to 70 pictures, versus the 10 the MLS allows and get a more detailed description because MLS only allows 1000 characters. The MLS system is excellent and was originally designed, back when they were a printed paper book, as a listing book for Real Estate Professionals. Even today, to have access to a MLS you need a Real Estate professional license, so they serve their purpose and the local one is very good, but obviously limited because there are thousands of listings on it. The personal property websites are getting nearly 60 views per day, or 450 per week. With these two tools my listings get 850 views per week nationally and internationally. Additionally there are another 200 – 500 views of the properties through the many different websites used.

Finally the unique value comes from the home being prepared for sale. Small maintenance issues should be addressed and corrected. The home should be “staged” for sale. I provide all of my listing clients with a great video called “123 Get it Sold” which is a DVD with a Realtor and Designer together and gives great ideas and tips to get your home staged. Simple things we look past every day make a difference when showing a property. If a home is “turn key” that is added value for potential buyers.

There are two properties with the same floor plan in the same neighborhood, one is a foreclosure and one a traditional resale home. The foreclosure is $100,000 but needs about $20,000 to make the dwelling livable and to repair some maintenance issues. The resale home is $ 135,000 but is “turn key” with fresh paint, totally staged, and move in ready which one will the client pick? The Real Estate professional will leverage the value of the home being “turn key”. One thing I always warn clients on when looking at distressed properties is the potential for “other unseen issues”. What I mean is air conditioning, roof, etc. Ironically enough the same is true for a resale home that is not kept up and shows poorly. Potential buyers will question the “unseen” issues like the AC and roof.

Remember that resale homes are selling right now so if you really want to or have to sell it is possible. With a robust marketing plan, priced at the market and a great looking home that will show well, these homes are selling as fast as the distressed properties.  

Staging a home for a sale is as important as being priced ahead of the market. Staging is the art of preparing the house for sale. Staging is what you do after you've cleaned, decluttered, painted, made minor repairs; it's all about dressing the house for sale. Staging makes your house look bigger, brighter, cleaner, warmer, more habitable and, best of all; it makes home buyers want to buy it!

The staging process starts when you search for a qualified listing agent by asking the questions regarding staging and preparing your home for sale. Some Real Estate Sales Professionals are had earned an ASP RE Certification which is an Accredited Staging Professional for Realtors designation. Other Real Estate Professionals will have a certified ASP Staging Professional on retainer or on staff.

According to statistics, 94.6% of ASP Staged homes sell within 35 days. Additionally, the cost of staging a home can have a 300% return on that investment during the sales process. Using a Realtor that has these resources for you will reduce the days your home is on the market and get you a much better price for your home.

The “Seven C’s Of Home Staging” include clean, clutter free, color, compromise, creativity, commitment and communicate. Remember that the investment of staging your home is far less expensive that the possible price reductions on your home may incur during it’s time on the market.

For more information on staging homes for sale visit my website at www.GreatSWFLHomes.com.

In today’s Real Estate marketplace it is important to set yourself up to sell your property quickly and for the most money. There are four basic ways to do this: Pricing ahead of the market, utilizing a world class REALTOR, Staging your home and Intense Marketing. One of the least expensive is home staging.