Business & Merchant

Last Updated on Thursday, 29 October 2015 14:24

By Roger Dolanch - Broker/owner

Buying or selling a house is not something most people do every day. Despite this, many sellers and buyers think they know how it works based on the experiences of friends and family, stories they’ve heard, or things they’ve read.
Be aware that there are a number of myths that circulate about how real estate actually works. Believing those myths can hurt your chances of buying or selling the right home at the right price. Here are some of the most common myths that can trip up buyers and sellers:

Set your home price higher than what you expect to get. Listing your home at too high a price may net you a lower price in the long run. Shoppers and their agents often don't look at homes that are priced above market value. Additionally, buyers today become suspicious of houses on the market for weeks or months. When the market is good and the property is priced closer to market value, multiple offers become common, and sellers will actually price their homes for less than they expect to get, in the hopes of generating those multiple offers to get above asking price.

You can save money selling your home yourself. Some people do successfully sell homes on their own, but they need the skills to get the home listed online, market the home to prospective buyers, negotiate the contract and then deal with any issues that arise during the inspection or loan application phases. It's not impossible to sell a home on your own, but you'll find that buyers expect a substantial discount when you do, so what you think you save on a real estate commission may end up meaning a lower net price after all.

The market will only go up. In recent years, homebuyers and sellers have experienced a time of increasing home values, then a sharp decline during the economic downturn and now another period of increasing values. Don’t think for a minute that the market only goes up. Think about when the next correction will come. The recent recession should have reminded everyone that real estate prices can indeed fall, and fall a lot.

You should renovate your kitchen and bathroom before you sell. If your kitchen and baths work, a major remodel could backfire. Prospective buyers may not share your taste, but they don't want to redo something that has just been renovated. "You're better off adjusting your price accordingly," says Kevin Brown Jr., a regional director of the NAEBA. "Most buyers want to put their own spin on things."

You'll earn back what you spend on renovations. If you fix the heating and air conditioning system or roof, you will sell your house more quickly, but you probably won't recoup what you spent. You're likely to recoup only 67.8% of what you spent on a major kitchen remodel and 70% of what you spent on a bathroom remodel on a mid-range home. If you're going to do these projects, it's better to do them for your own enjoyment.

All the properties listed in the multiple listing service show up online. Your agent or their brokerage must choose to let the listings show up online. Most do, but it never hurts to verify that yours will.

Open houses sell properties. Homes rarely sell to buyers who visited them during an open house. Agents like open houses because it enables them to find additional customers who are looking to buy or sell homes.