Summer tips to heat up your condo sale
Too many condominiums for sale. Prospective buyers are on vacation. Mortgage money is hard to get. Don’t let those pesky realities prevent you from trying to sell your unit this summer. The real estate market is slow, but it isn’t dead.
“People buy and sell every single day,” said Christine Lutz of Garrison Partners, sales agent for Van Buren Lofts in the West Loop. “The ones who are out in the summer and in the dead of winter are serious buyers. Otherwise, they would be out doing something else.”
We asked Lutz and others what condo sellers can do right now to attract those buyers. Consider their seasonal marketing advice:
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Freshen up. You’re competing against new-construction models, which have been professionally decorated. At the very least, fix what’s broken, pack away the clutter, remove outdated wallpaper and flowered curtains and deep-clean everything, said Elena Dan of Re/Max 1st Class Realty in Skokie. “People are not willing to do any work today,” she said.
Stage the balcony. A condo dweller’s summer joy is sitting on the balcony, enjoying morning coffee or evening candlelight. Make it inviting with planters and colorful pillows and placemats, said Dan.
“A balcony expands the living space to the outside, and makes the unit seem bigger,” she said.
Don’t show an empty unit. If you’ve moved, leave a few pieces of furniture. You don’t need a lot, just enough to illustrate placement possibilities and what size bed fits in a bedroom, said Emily Jeffries of Re/Max Exclusive Properties in Lincoln Park.
One of Jeffries’ clients bought inexpensive furnishings on Craigslist for a vacant unit and will resell it after the unit sells.
Keep cool. Test the air conditioning to make sure it works.
“If you don’t have air conditioning, turn on any ceiling fans and keep the blinds closed until right before a showing,” said Jeffries. “No one wants to walk into a hot, stuffy condo.”
Hire a selling agent. Make sure your real estate broker has a recent, proven track record, said Leigh Marcus of @properties’ Lincoln Park office.
“You should ask, what is your plan of action to get the home sold above putting it in the multiple listing service?” he said.
He suggested several proactive strategies: Packaging the listing data for easy insertion on social media sites and a telephone campaign to neighborhood residents to tell them about the listing. Another is the reverse offer, which is where the seller’s agent approaches interested prospects to offer the terms they need to make a deal.
“You can’t just wait for a buyer to come to you,” he said.
Get FHA certified. If your building isn’t approved by the Federal Housing Administration, buyers will stay away in droves. That’s because 30 percent or more are taking out FHA-backed loans, which require down-payments as low as 3 percent.
You can’t get FHA certification by yourself, but you can urge your board to apply. The approval will help all current and future sellers.
It’s a fallacy that FHA means low-income or subsidized housing, as some people believe, said Beth Lloyd of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Schaumburg. “It only means that the loan can’t default,” she said. “So many associations have been financially hurt by foreclosures and related expenses, they should welcome the security that FHA offers.”
Price right the first time. Don’t set your price high, hoping to get lucky or planning to lower it later, said Lutz.
“People are looking to gobble up the best unit at the best price,” said Lutz. “They have a lot of information these days. If you come in at a test price, even 5 percent above market, they won’t take you seriously.”
Spread the word. Tell everyone you meet that your home is for sale. Tell people at the gym and in line at the grocery store. Post your listing information on Facebook, and ask your friends to repost it. Hang flyers on community bulletin boards.
“You never know when you’ll find someone who wants to move or who knows someone who is relocating to the area,” said Marcus.
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