Happy 2007!

Happy 2007! There is still a lot of time ahead of us in 2007 to buy or sell a home. It should be and interesting year ahead. Many experts are projecting that a buyer’s market will continue, at least for the time being. For those of you who are considering putting your home on the market, here are a few tips from MSNRealEstate.com . Some of them are standard, and just common sense, but there are new things out there too. Either way, it is good to review these tips.

Don't let your property languish while new, competitive inventory is building up. Price it right initially to give buyers a sense they are getting a value for their money and to avoid numerous, incremental price reductions that reek of desperation.

If you get a lot of activity -- visits and second showings -- don't respond instantly to an offer. Tell buyers you'll allow a couple of days to give adequate time for multiple house hunters to view your home.

Educate yourself about your local market. Ask me for these statistics, including comparisons from last year.

Inventory. The number of homes currently on the market.

Days on the market. The length of time properties are staying on the market.

Average sale price. This is helpful information, but it can be skewed by, for example, numerous high-end properties sold. The average price in your market may still be $150,000, just as it was last year, but today $150,000 may buy a lot more house.

Median price. This is the price at which half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.
List-to-sell ratios. This ratio, expressing the list price of homes over the selling price, will reveal drops in prices. Ratios are given for periods of time -- say, a month or a quarter -- showing the effect of price reductions on time on the market.

Find the agent who can expose your property to the most buyers. Call or e-mail me to show you how together we can make this happen