J
Welcome to the market!

A few suggestions:
In the average MLS only about 20-25% of listings sell within the first 30 days. The remaining 75-80% take anywhere from 60-180 days OR MORE to sell.

That means that of listings TAKEN BY REALTORS 75% are not priced correctly.

So that means that if only 25% of the listings are price correctly, if you are interviewing Realtors, how will you know in which category they lie.

So my suggestion is that you interview a couple of REaltors, have them analyze your situation. Compare their proposals. Try it on your own, if you cannot sell, then you'll have your Realtor ready in the wings.

Ouch - it always hurts when I hear stories like yours where someone in my profession didn't do their job right. But there are great REALTORS® out there! You just need to do your due diligence when hiring one. For starters talk with others who have had a recent real estate experience with a selling agent. Notice I mentioned selling and not just as a buyers agent - once you get a few referrals - interview them! Here on Trulia you'll find great info on questions to ask.

If you need referral - Robert A. Hulme is someone I've learned about from his active online presence. His office Phone: (801) 969-1332

Good luck and keep us posted! Hopefully this scenario will end with a satisfied seller!

Pamela St. Peter, REALTOR® in Raleigh, NC

Hello,

First of all I'm sorry that you have had many bad experiences with realtors. I know that there are some great ones out there, it's just finding the good apples among the bad ones.

Yes, an appraisal can help you to know where your home stands as far as value. And I know that you're not too keen on talking to a realtor but I would be willing to show you the sold comparables of your home if you want to save on an appraisal. I've done BPO's (Broker Price Opinion) this is when a bank that has or is about to foreclose on a home and they order a BPO rather than an appraisal. They know that an agent can give a very similar price opinion to give a resale value. I'd be willing to do this to help you out, No Obligation!

You can view some Videos of my recent listings at:

http://13032South2830West.blogspot.com
http://3214WestBrunleyCourt.blogspot.com

Becky Nay, GRI
Keller Williams Realty
801-573-2077
beckynay@kw.com
http://www.beckynay.com My Website

I can only echo Colleen. You could get a very good idea from a market research done by a local Realtor.
You need to do a little research and ask around; some of us are better than others.

When you get a buyer the lender's appraisal may come in lower because in most parts of the country we haven;t reached the bottom yet. Lenders build anticipated deflation into the limit they want to lend on.
Just off my head I would say that inspite of your improvements the home is most likely worth less than what you paid for.

BTW: You said it only took you one week last time when the market was hot to seel the house on your own. Now we have the opposite. Today there is no line waiting to get a chance to buy your property. Today we have a line of people wanting to sell their properties. Today it is price, price and price again and the best of Realtors can't bring you a buyer unless you realize that.

I would suggest hiring an appraiser that is local to your area. That way you would know how much a buyer could mortgage on the home, also. I'm sorry to hear that you have had such bad experiences with a realtor, because in today's market along with all of the changing regulations and laws, a good agent would be of invaluable assistance.