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Home Sellers
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Taking Would-Be Sellers on a Tour of Competing Homes? Bad Idea

When Subjectivity Isn’t Just Superficial If the Comp’s aren’t convincing enough, Realtor “Jane Doe” will take Sellers on tours of comparable properties. “They can see this other house is in much better condition, and it’s priced $20,000 less than theirs. It’s eye-opening.” –Spokane agent, sharing her strategy for working with unrealistic Sellers in “Setting Them Straight”; Realtor Magazine. ...
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Why the Neighbor’s House Usually Isn’t a Comp (“Comparable Sold Property”)

Comparing Honey Crisps to Braeburns One of the more quizzical looks Realtors get is when they (try to) explain to a prospective home Seller that their neighbor’s house isn’t a “Comp” (Comparable Sold Property). In plain English: it isn’t relevant — at least directly — for pricing their home. For the uninitiated, a Comp is...
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Must See

Avoiding Real Estate Clichés Like the Plague (see what I mean??)

“Not a Drive-By!” “Must See!” Yada, Yada, Yada One of my favorite Mad magazine cartoons (circa 1970) shows a vendor in front of a food stand with the following sign: “turkey burgers,” “chicken burgers,” “buffalo burgers,” “tuna burgers,” “veggie burgers,” etc. etc. The caption: “we have some with ham, too, but we don’t know what...
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“Wait a Second! Don’t Sellers Try to Get MORE for Their Home, Not Less?!?”

Multiple Offers and Appraisal Worries (Still) Alice in Wonderland would’ve loved today’s bizzaro housing market. That’s because — in the midst of an unprecedented Buyer feeding frenzy — “up” is often “down,” “in” is “out,” and “down” is “up.” Exhibit A: the Minnetonka home seller who reportedly countered a Buyer $20k below the price offered...
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What to Do About the Pornographic Statue** on the Neighbor’s Front Lawn

When the Neighbors are the Dealbreaker Prospective Buyer: “We love the house. But we could never live across the street from that pornographic statue.” Phil Dunphy: “Oh . . . huh . . . I never noticed it.” Prospective Buyer: “Yeah . . . you can see it from inside when you look out the...
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Proper (& Improper) Purposes of Realtor Previews

Why “Just Previewing” (Usually) Serves Sellers’ Interests A Realtor showing is when a Realtor takes a prospective Buyer through a “For Sale” home. No competing Sunday open house traffic, no busybody listing agent (representing the owner) present, and — perhaps most importantly — no owner around. The convention is to set up the showing online anywhere from a...
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