Ya i have dropped the price ten grand since the start of this, painted the walls fixed cracks, floors, and landscaped the yard, this is only a 4 year old house. I have moved a lot of stuff out, i take my tv, and recliner out of the house everytime we show it, im going to start taking all the cloths out of the closet and make cookies and put flowers around the room, from what i read that helps. The problem i find is that i pay this person to suggest an open house or a price drop, not for me to suggest it, they are supposed to be the professional not me.

Did your Realtor prepare a Comparative Market Analysis when you listed the property? Did you price your home accordingly? Have you de-cluttered and cleaned the house until it's so shiny and clean that you can eat off the floors? Is your home easy to show? Does is smell good? Is the yard neat and tidy? Do you have animals and can you see or smell them? What is the feed back from the buyers who looked at your home? Are you the prettiest cheapest girl at the party? Do you have the maximum number of pictures in the mls? Are you in a desirable neighborhood and if not have you discounted your home to make up for the short coming? Is your home smaller than most of the homes in the neighborhood? Is the lot smaller? Is your home in disrepair? Is your home dated? Do you have personal belongings such as pictures or religious items visible? If you have done everything above and the home isn't selling you may need another agent. My guess is that there are many items above that you could work on and to get the home sold.

Marty, your Realtor should have provided comparables to your property in the area. This report should reflect the activity and market survey of the said area for the past six months. It also shows what has closed, price changes, closed transactions etc... I understand that the seller ultimately prices his/her own property, but your agent should have a strong opinion on how much your price will be. Otherwise, you'll be pricing yourself out of the market. After all, we are the professionals in this field. So in essence, if you have had listed your property for several months now, and no offers? Maybe its time to say... YOU'RE FIRED!!! HEHEHE.

Marty,
Ask your agent to document their success in the past 2-3 years. How many homes have they listed, how many sold, how many expired or were cancelled. If they can't document success, find an agent who can. No one will be perfect, some sellers are uncooperative or their situation changes, but if they aren't selling the majority of their listings you now know why.

Your agent's responsibility is to provide a high level of care. Licensees have fiduciary duties to you as a client. If you feel he/she doesn't live up to your standards, you can escalate the issue to his/her superiors. They can assign another agent to you or release their duties altogether. Agents' performance varies due to experience and expertise. Unfortunately, there are agents out there that are lazy and don't know what they are doing.

When you feel your interests are not being served.

Marty- Alan mentioned about 20 posts ago that you are competing with short sales ans bank owned properties. Some of these Sellers offer aggressive pricing + incentives. For example: 3.5% concession that can be used toward appliances and/or closing costs. Included in closing costs are discount points to reduce a potential Buyer's interest rate and payment. These incentives give Buyers options. Because some are cash-constrained and could use money toward closing costs, others anticipate increased earnings in the next few years and would appreciate reduced payments for the first two or three years(Temporary Buydown). In other words: Buyers are NOT one price fits all. Think outside the box!

Good luck! It seems you are now in a better place as far as understanding the market and the competition.

You may not want to here it ,but your Realtor may have told you. The most obvious assessment it that your home is over priced in it's market. How much reduction has taken place in the last 3 quarters of a year? If you have only had an activity of 10 showings in that amount of time, then it is the least desirable home (smaller, less ammenities, cheaper area) than the other homes in it's price range. Put you home buying goggles on. Ask your self what things you looked for when you made your purchase?
You can put any price tag on a home and even if your lucky enough to find a buyer to pay what you want regardless of the surounding market, it has to appraise in order for a lender to finance. Unless of course you have a cash buyer. Cash buyers do not over pay for anything, so it would be rare. Your Realtors fault is not getting the right price for the market( to bring the buyers in). If you are aggressive, then you will reduce your price dramatically. At this point, it is "market worn" . It might even be a good suggestion to give your home a market break. Buyers see a home on the market that long and they ask " What is wrong with it?" When offers come in, they are low. Probably lower than if it had been reduced to market value to begin with. Ask your Realtor to do updated CMA and go over it. If you were the buyer what active listings would you choose over your home? Based on size, price, ect. You've got to be realistic. Find the active listings most comparable and undercut there sales price. Make sure there are sold comparables to support your price. Remember, if it is not market value based on sold comps than it will not appraise. Unless you have a cash buyer than the appraisal can break the deal!
Once it is priced right than you should focus on making it shine. Fresh paint in neutral colors, makes a fresh canvas for any buyer to imagine their own furniture and decor. Do extra maintenance and cleaning, focus on curb apeal and functions. When things need maintenance or have poor appearance than buyers can only imagine the issues that are unseen. Have it clean, neat, organized, uncluttered, available for last minute showings. They will be your most motivated buyers, the one's that can not wait to get in it. Remove extra furniture from smaller rooms to open them up and give them a more spacious feel.
All this will help, but the most basic issue now and will always be is price. A home is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Market Value is always too high when I'm working with buyer's and too low when I'm working with sellers and that is where your Realtor education and CMA research is helpful. Remember a Realtor only gets paid when you sell, so they want it sometimes more badly than the seller. It cost us money to market and it looks bad when it takes too long or does not sell. Your Realtor's business and future lively hood depends on selling your home in a timely manor. Good Luck!

Martin
Some information may be of assistance to you.
1. Less than 34% of Reatlors are full time. That is according to an NAR survey. Is your Realtor full-time or part-time?

2. In any given market about 20-25% of listings sell within 30 days, and these listings sell closest to asking price. That means that 75-80% of listings are overpriced. Do you know where you fit?

3. How many homes, like yours, have sold since you listed your home? Chances are quite a few. Your next Realtor should provide you with weekly or biweekly updates on market activity. The average buyer looks at 10-12 homes before they buy, so you need to know your competition, those 10-12 homes that are in your price range, size, etc., and what they are doing.

BTW, even with a listing agreement, if your Realtor is unable or unwilling to sell your property, IMHO you can fire them for incompetence. Just have a meeting with them, give them two weeks to get an offer, and if they cannot, they are gone. (assuming that you are cooperating with requests...such as lowering the price - not even the Realtor of the Year can sell an overpriced home....

Good luck.

Many factors come into play:

Are you in a family community where majority of homes are only sold from April - July prior school starting?

What is price of your home ? The more expensive of a property less showings you will have

What area of town? Is there more new construction forcing buyers visit those locations than a home all ready built.?

Request agent provide you the DOM of "like homes in the area" assist to answers of many of your questions.

How many other homes on the market?

Does your home have curb appeal? Fashion forward with today''s standards? Granite counter tops, hardwood flooring? Paint? Light fixtures?

These are all issues come into play sell a home. However you can have the worst house so ugly priced above market value have bidding wars on a property AND then have perfect home, great location, below market value can be on the market for years.

Lynn911

I like your blogs rockin, that info is awesome, im going to call my agent now and set up a meeting, if they cant give me some better marketing strategies, some helpful tips on improving the look of my house then, cya,,

There will probably be a Realtor protection period beyond the end of any extension of the listing period that you may have granted.
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Our contract reads" the protection period shall not apply if Seller has entered into a valid, written agreement with another licensed Illinois real estate broker during the protection period".

So as long as you're "relisted with an agency" (and a flat-fee-agency qualifies)... there's no protection period.

Actually there are several properties in your area that are similar to your (2 br/1.1 bath) ... maybe they're not ranch duplexes... but most buyers don't insist on a ranch.... they just want 2 bedrooms and at least a bath and half.

maybe you want to contact the agents who put the other one under contract, and interview them.

Whats your suggestion then? thats the only house similar to ours, and it is under contract, i look at the the site every day and see if anything is popped up, and thats the only one besides one that is listed a little above us. I do agree on the photo's , they do suck, no virutual tour. Im about to say screw it and list it as a flat fee, on an MLS site, offer 3 percent and drop the price some more?

Actually, after looking at your listing it appears you've made $12,100 worth of reductions... in a total of 4 reductions... (some only a month apart for only $2,000) and some very poor quality photos, and some "minimalist" description.

Here's a duplex right near you... that's a SHORT sale at 1412 Sherbourn for $20,000 less than you are now (and it's under contract... and yes, short sales DO count as comps)...that's the competition that buyers are seeing (and that an appraiser will see)... and it's a 2br/1.1 bath duplex... just like you are, in your same development.

Good luck.

Ah...now! Look on Trulia and ZIllow to see what has sold lately in your area and contact the broker that is selling homes in your area.

Be prepared to price it right, make some repairs possibly and be flexible based on the agent's recommendations.

Good luck!

YOU CANNOT GIVE AWAY YOUR HOUSE IN MINOOKA. BEEN ON MARKET FOR SIX MONTHS , 12 SHOWINGS EVERYONE LIKES THE HOUSE .BUT WANTS TO GIVE YOU 180K FOR A HOUSE I PAID 315K WITH ALL THE LANDSCAPE AND UP GRADES .THE REALITOR I AM USING SOLD MY LAST HOUSE IN A WEEK. TAXES ARE A JOKE 6800.00 PER YEAR .AND THE ONLY THING GOING UP IS CRIME. MINOOKA IS A JOKE. WE ARE A TRUCK STOP, AND THATS IT .PROPERTY VALVES ARE FALLING FAST .DRIVE AROUND AND LOOK AT ALL THE FORECLOSURES. LOOK AT ALL THE EMPTY STORES THIS TOWN IS DONE.

Yikes.....if it has come to this well all I can say is......the relationship between an agent and the client is sacred and close in my world. The word Fiduciary is used to describe it meaning "trust". If there is no trust, if the working relationshhip has broke down, if communications are failing and there is no connection or resolution, then it is time to part ways. Make sure everyone knows what is going on and why so as to leave each other on a good note. It is not the end of the world, but a learning experience for all.

If you are serously unhappy with your Realtor than you need to meet with the office broker or just a phone call to express your concerns. Your listing agreement belongs to the principal broker not the agent or broker associate. The office broker would be able to find a solution, assign another agent, or even let you out of your listing. Sounds like you have been an A+ seller and I am sure your Office Broker would like the oppurtunity to save face. I'm sorry that you have had such a bad experience.

Oh no she hasnt, and trust me i want to hear anything, i have to call her to see how a showing went,,,

Oh no she hasnt, and trust me i want to hear anything, i have to call her to see how a showing went,,,

Thanks for your advice Keith, my realtor suggests nothing, lol, not a price change not a color change not a nothing, so ya i think im done.

Hey Martin, don't beat yourself up too much on your agent choice. I used the most recommended way. I got three referrals to my last one from friends, and he didn't turn out so well.

Thanks for the info sandi, i see your from seneca, i work at the high school, anyways i repainted the whole house, fixed all the cracks and stuff, i think the price is right but, i wouldnt know, never been consoled on it.

It is always best to interview more than 1 realtor, it isn't always the company that sells your property, but the actual agent. Have you discussed price, what comps has she shown you in your area? What I tell my clients is to start at your front door(pretend you are the buyer, be honest) and look at your home, does it need a fresh coat of paint, decluttering, etc. If your home is in tiptop shape, and you feel it is priced at todays' market value, then talk to your realtor, if you get no satisfaction, then discuss this with the Managing Broker, if he or she assigns another agent, find out what they are going to do differently. I want to wish you luck in selling your home.

MrEdllc, (our MLS) requires that you be off-market for a full 90-days to reset the market time clock.

thanks for your help, great information, i wish i would of done a lot more research before i picked a real estate agent.

Martin,

As far as the listing appearing somewhat fresh, Alan or someone who's familiar with your MLS would have to answer that. There 's also a cumulitive days on the market number that most of the agents really go by, but then again a Realtor from your area will have to answer that.

Im on top of it already, contacted the first person that looked liked they had some credentials, question for ya, how long does it take to take the account back to 0?

Thanks Martin. What I forgot about, in my situation, is that I decided to keep the house off the MLS to allow for the days on the market count to go back to zero. So our house was a true FSBO for a while before it sold, and to minimize any complications, I did get a full release from the agent's broker.

My thinking is that the managing broker will want to assign you another agent. If that's the case insist that you will have to approve fully of the agent, and interview her/him thoroughly. Refer to the agent selection blog for the interview. If you don't like how the interview goes, it's time to move on entirely. While you're getting evertything set up as a FSBO such as deciding on a MLS listing service, put the sign in the yard immediately as well as doing a craigslist ad, but do get a release or a list of names as I referred to in my earlier post.

Good luck on whatever you decide.

Good one Alan. I was reliving a similar experience I had with my agent, but I didn't bother with doing a flat-fee listing. As we both know, I just got lucky.

"and list it as a flat fee, on an MLS site, offer 3 percent and drop the price some more?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Martin,
If you do that, be sure to read your listing agreement thoroughly. There will probably be a Realtor protection period beyond the end of any extension of the listing period that you may have granted. Work that out with the managing broker either with a full release, or a list of protected buyers that you would only owe a commission on should one of those be a buyer within the protection period. And again, check out the FSBO blog that I posted a link to in my earlier answer.

already made ten grand worth of cuts, thats on my own though, the Realtor inst suggesting any of this? i dont know what supposed to work and what isnt supposed to work? ya know, im a guy that listens to constructive criticism, and i will take into account what a professional are saying, if she says you need to drop the price more, i would really consider it, but the problem is she hasnt even given me a price comparison were other houses like mine have sold, and there are sooo many freeking foreclosure's out there that are like 30 grand cheaper.
The funny thing is my house even with the MLS number isnt coming up on this website,,, strange it comes up on the remax site,, 07227008

Martin - if the home is only 4 years old, it's highly possible that you have lost a great deal of value in the market. Prices, as you know, have dropped nationwide. If you've been on the market for 9 months, with no offers and very few showing, unless other properties in your price range and area are also not selling, it's very likely that you're overpriced.

You may be trying to stem your losses, but the market doesn't care what you paid, and how much you'd like to get. Buyers today are very savvy, and they recognize value when they see it, and they're telling you that they don't recognize your home as a value on the market.

Take a good long "objective" look at your home and your price (against other comparable homes), and see if you need to make a reduction.

Good luck.

3 months ago at least... Martin first off you need a brokers price opinion to show you what your home is worth in todays market and to see where your house in currently listed homes. If you are priced out of the market, you could be getting held back from teh start. Yes you need an aggressive listing agent who is going to update you about market prices and let you know what the potential bhuyers think about your house, what they like, what they dont like and why they didnt put in an offer. I like to track my showings using a feedback system that i can pass along to my sellers so we know is there anything we have to do to fix something or what we can do to get an offer. good luck with your sale.

It's time when you're dissatisfied, whether it's justified or not - you are, of course, paying the bill.

However, nothing helps more than a price drop, and if you change Realtors(r) and drop the price by five or ten percent, I assure you that the new Realtor(r) is going to look a lot better regardless of how little actual work they do.

An agent can do all the marketing he needs (or wants for the clients) but when it comes down to it, price is really the key.

Hi Martin,

Below are two links. The first may be of some use in selecting a new Realtor, and yeah, I think it's time to move on. The second link while it's directed to FSBOs, it can possibly be of some value to you with ideas to help supplement your next agent's efforts. If you should find something in the FSBO blog that you would like to try, check with your agent first, and always use your agent for the contact person. Good luck.

http://www.trulia.com/blog/rockinblu/2008/12/i_ve_got_my_fin…

http://www.trulia.com/blog/rockinblu/2008/08/thinking_about_…

10 showings and no offers sounds at least in part to be a pricing problem. I would recommend you have a discussion about the price, try to get that right. Then insist on Open Houses and talk about other aspects of the market plan that do not satisfy you. If she doesn't respond, then it may be time to make a change.

Good luck,
Jeanne Feenick
Unwavering Commitment to Service
Find success at http://www.feenick.com