Alda,

As you know ,15001 takes in Hopewell, part of Center and Aliquippa, so it would help if I knew which area you are in . You will not have as many new listings competing with you now, as in the spring, and generally if a buyer is looking at houses in the fall, they are serious buyers, as opposed to spring, when everyone is dying to get outside, and may just be "window shopping". Interest rates are still down, so you also have that in your favor. If you'd like me to stop over with a market analysis, please reply to this email.

Leslie Bostaph

Just remember, business is business but this is personal. We have been conditioned to believe that our home is one of our biggest investments and, in many ways, it is. But unlike stocks, bonds and mutual funds our home is an investment tightly woven into the fabric of our lives. We would not invite friends over to see our new stock purchase. We have never spent Thanksgiving sitting down to dinner with our mutual fund family. No, these paper securities are, for the most part, unemotional investments. But our homes are completely different. Here is where we gather with friends and family. Here is where we lay our heads in the evening. Here is where memories are created. Yes, our homes are an investment but a very personal investment.

When it comes to selling our home we need to deal with both aspects. There is a time for personally motivated decisions and a time for financially motivated decisions. Knowing when each of these comes into play is the key to successfully selling our home. As we start, our first consideration is going to be whether or not to put the home on the market. Many factors are involved in making this choice. Is our family expanding and we need more space? Or are we downsizing? Is having a larger yard a desire or have those maintenance issues become overwhelming and wouldn’t a condo be better? Want to be where it is warmer? Cooler? Everyone has a right time to make a move and it is our personal reasons, not market conditions, which should determine that time.

Doing all the emotional soul searching early is a good thing because we need to get it out of our system as we enter the next phase. Now is the time to address the investment side of our personal investment. This is the time to critically assess what we have and where it fits in the real estate market. Once we have chosen to sell our home then we need to put our emotions properly in check in order to prepare and price it correctly. It is, for many, the hardest step to take in the home sale process.

This is when the status of the market, current trends and return on investment become major factors. The market is what it is right now. We have to sell our home in this market, not last year's market, and not the market we wish it would be. Realistict expectations will make the process easier and the way to gain those expectations is to research the current market carefully. Making proper comparisons is key to pricing our home correctly and positioning our home for a successful sale. If we have a 2400 sq. ft. 3 bedroom colonial on .25 acres then we need to assess what other 2400 sq. ft. 3 bedroom colonials have sold for in the last 6 months. We can’t price our home for the $425,000 the neighbors got if that home was a 4000 sq.ft. 4 bedroom on 1 acre. The comparisons must be as equal as possible.

While we cannot control the market, we can control the marketability of our home. To do that we must take a step back and look through the eyes of a buyer. As much as we like our owl collection, does it bring a cluttered and cramped look to our home? Then it is time to pack it up. Is the paint color overly dramatic? It might seem great to us but that shade of Well Ripened Tangerine will likely be a deterent to the majority of buyers. Evaluate what can be done to increase the chance of making the sale within the time needed and at an acceptable price. Factor in return on investment. We need to get the value out of the improvements we make. After all, putting $1.00 in and getting back $.50 value is just bad business. Above all, remember, at this stage “It’s nothing personal”. Once our home is on the market, we must no longer think of it as our home but as a product for sale.

Our home is our castle. It is also one of our biggest investments. Considering each aspect at the proper time will be the critical factor toward success as we choose to sell this very personal investment.




Donna Saylor & Carolyn Mitchell believe in The Power of TWO! using it to educate consumers and provide exceptional client service built from a foundation of honesty. Through GMAC Real Estate/ Premier Network they enjoy a very active career as REALTORS. Questions or comments can be directed to donnasay@comcast.net.