4 Key Factors to Selling

Home > Selling a Home > 4 Key Factors to Selling

Getting a home from ‘Just Listed’ to ‘SOLD’ is a science, not random luck by simply placing a sign in the yard, an open house and inserting the property into the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

In addition to a broad and aggressive marketing plan, there are variables that can affect how long your home sits on the market, which can cost you money and time.

Below, you can learn about our 4 Key Factors to Selling a Home.

1. Exposure

Internet Marketing

In a competitive real estate market, exposure is a key factor to getting a home sold.  The more online exposure a home receives, the higher the odds are of it selling.

While any real estate broker can list a home in the MLS, on national real estate websites, with Zillow and in Craigslist, only Syan Real Estate can feature homes on CabezonHomes.com and on our other local Rio Rancho website RioRanchoHomes.com.

"92% of home buyers use the Internet to search for properties."

2. Availability

Cabezon Realtor®

The availability of your home is crucial.  Once a buyer has filtered through numerous listings, narrowed down the list to their favorites, they schedule a day and time to view them.

If your home is not available to view the day the buyer is available, you could be sending that buyer to the house down the street.

From our experience, if a home that a buyer wishes to see is not available when they view the other listings, 9 times out of 10, they simply scratch it off the list.

Try to avoid making qualified buyers make special arrangements in order to view your home. Some special arrangements are:

  • Available by appointment only (e.g. no lockbox allowed).
  • Advanced notice because pets are in the home.
  • Real estate broker must give 24 hours notice prior to showing.
  • Home only available before 2:00pm Tuesday – Thursday.

Don’t worry; we understand that you may have challenging circumstances that may require your home to have a limited availability.  We can help find solutions to accommodate these challenges.

3. Cleanliness

Sell Your Home

The cleanliness and maintenance of your home can factor not only in the time your home is on the market, but most importantly the price it can sell for.

Getting your home ready to hit the market goes beyond straightening up and fluffing a few pillows.

Preparing your home begins with de-personalization.  Pack away unnecessary items, but avoid filling up the closets with these items because, ample storage space is a top feature home buyers look for in a new home.

Next, clean wall-to-wall from dusting light fixtures, cleaning baseboards to using subtle air fresheners.  Finally, extend cleaning to the exterior of the home.  The yard leading to the front door is your curb appeal, it’s your home’s first impression to a potential buyer.

4. Price

Get Pre-Qualified For a Home

While price seems like an obvious factor, there’s much more to pricing a home than setting a random or hopeful number.

Even overpriced by $1.00 could take your home off the radar of a large volume of potential home buyers.  Avoiding pitfalls in pricing can give you an advantage on the market. 

Common mistakes in setting the list price for a home include:

  • Pricing based on various improvements that generally do no help value.
  • Pricing above market to allow for offers.
  • Pricing based on a desired net amount to use as a down payment on the next home.
  • Pricing according to the home listed down the street.
  • Pricing based on a specific amount needed to settle other debts (e.g. credit cards, auto loan, etc.).
  • Pricing based on an inaccurate Automated Valuation Model such as Zillow’s Zestimate.
  • Pricing based on what a friend/relative sold their home for across town.

Price should be based exclusively on actual comparable sales in close proximity of your home as well as taking into consideration the active homes on the market that have not yet sold.

If even slightly over priced, your home can sit on the market for 2-3+ months longer than if it was strategically set according to market research.  The longer a home is on the market, the less it can sell for.  We’ll explain to you the various price points and how each one can dictate a different outcome.