Buy Low/Sell High!  Without a doubt, how low you bought, and how intelligently you bought, will have the greatest impact on the eventual profit you will make when you sell your home. Sell Higher in any market If you already read "How to Buy Low" you will understand how much impact the size of your lot has on increases in your property's value as the years go by. You will also understand how important buying in the right location is, and how important buying from the right seller is, if your goal is to make a profit. But what if you weren't as knowledgeable when you bought as you are now? How can you still make the best of the chunk of real estate that you're sitting on now? Property values rise and fall over the long term. Listing your house near the peaks of the cycle obviously means you'll sell for more money. We're near a peak in the cycle now. There are vendors selling today, after owning only a few years, who are making a 50% profit on their homes. In today's hot sellers' market it's hard NOT to make money. If you're a conservative investor though, you expect the best but plan for the worst. What if the housing market crashes when you're ready to sell? How do you make money selling in a buyer's market? Fortunately for you, even in a buyer's market, buyers are still influenced by the same psychological factors as they are in a seller's market. They still lose their rationality when another buyer is interested in a property that they like. By properly timing the introduction of the house to the different parts of the market, and by pricing and merchandising it properly, you can still manipulate buyers into multiple offer over-bidding. Most buyers also don't know they're supposed to be looking for a large lot with an older house, rather than....well, your house. They're focused only on the features of the house and you can use that to your advantage. Buyers WANT to buy. That's why they are looking. When the right house hits the market, it has the same impact on them, whether it's a seller's or a buyer's market. If your property is attractive to buyers, it will attract offers. Any number of buyers larger than one leads to the same result: multiple offers and a higher sale price. I use a systematic Marketing approach to preparing a house for a sale and address; Produce, Price, Place, Promotion. First, your house has to appear to be a well-maintained home. Buyer's hate a mystery. Don't leave them wondering what's going to break down next in your house. See What If I Just Want It Sold? for tactics to use in your home. Please read Selling An Older House if you're home wouldn't be considered a newer home. Your house has to have the features that appeal to the majority of buyers. A good Realtor can tour your home and tell you which areas are on most buyer's 'want-list' and which are not. Be careful that you don't get carried away renovating though . See Renovating for Fun And Profit to avoid overspending. The decor of the house likely has to be changed. Now it looks like YOU live there. De-personalize and declutter it. To appeal to the largest number of buyers and pull in those multiple offers, it has to look like a showroom. Some sellers go as far as hiring an interior designer to "primp" their home before putting it up for sale. Builders are experts as at it and you can benefit from their expertise. Tour 10 or 20 decorated builders' model homes. You'll understand what appeals to today's buyers, and come away with a plan for the colours and style that will work in the house you're selling. The Buyers are the experts at pricing houses. Your buyers have likely been looking at MLS listings for a year and actually been touring houses for at least 3 months. They have been focused on houses listed just under the amount of their mortgage commitment. They have seen every house listed in your price range. They know which ones sold and for how much. They can walk into your house and tell you within $1,000 what it will eventually sell for. When buyers come into your house, you want them thinking "This is a well-maintained home." When they leave your house, you want them thinking "This is good deal!!" When they see the next carload of buyers pulling up to the curb, the primitive emotions take over. Their next stop is their Realtor's office where they write up one of the multiple offers you're hoping for. If, instead, you pad the price with 'negotiating room' they leave thinking, "Well, they're asking a bit too much, let's go see the next house." If you want to attract multiple offers, you HAVE to price it at it's market value. The process of selling a home is like a three-legged stool. The seller's motivation and the property itself are the two legs that will either sell the property or scare away any buyers. The stool will fall over though without the third leg, the plan to promote and market it A good Marketing Plan utilizes all of the principles that businesses use to achieve success. You can develop your own Marketing Plan (but see The Nine Costs of Selling Privately) or you can hire a Realtor who is skilled in merchandising homes. To exploit buyer's emotions and attract multiple offers, the promotional program and marketing plan must get the buyers coming to the house at the same time. My Fast-Track Home Marketing System is designed to accomplish just that. I can share the details of my strategy with you when I show you how I plan to sell your home. Once the promotional program starts to attract buyers to your house, your commitment to the marketing program is crucial. Your house has to be available for the buyers to view at their convenience. It has to be "showroom ready" at all times. For some sellers, that can mean going to stay with relatives or at a hotel for the first week of the listing. Above all, your job is to create the right first impression when the buyers come to see it. When the buyers see the photos and my description of your house on MLS.ca, or in an email from their buyer-agent, I have 30 seconds to convince them that yours is the house to make an appointment to see. When they step off the curb and onto your lawn, you have 30 seconds to create the impression that all buyers are looking for: "Well Maintained Home." Most buyers have made up their mind about a house before they open the front door. With foresight, it's possible to refine and tweek your house and land so that it is attractive to as many prospective buyers as possible. The more buyers that like it, and the more effective the Marketing Plan is, the more offers will roll in onto your kitchen table. You can maximize your sale price by: creating a house that has features and a decor that buyers are looking for; by pricing it right when it hits the market; by making it available and presentable; and by hiring the right Realtor to help you market and promote it. If you were lucky enough to have been a Fast-Track client of mine when you bought, you'll also be reaping the rewards of having bought at a lower price than you could have. I can't share the details on a website that is available to my competitors, but, my Fast-Track Home-Marketing System uses psychology and promotional timing to drive buyers crazy and attract multiple offers on your house. That means more money in your pocket after it's sold. Call me now. I'll do a consultation and show you how to prepare your home and land for a higher-priced sale. I will also prepare a marketing proposal to demonstrate how I would merchandise and promote you home, and get the offers rolling in. Then you can decide if I'm the right Realtor to help you sell high. If you're ready to sell, and want to get the best price, contact me now.