St. JosephThere is no way to spin it – the Lansing area is experiencing a Buyer’s Market.  There are a lot of homes competing for every buyer’s attention.  If you need to sell your home it isn’t going to be as easy as slapping a for sale sign in the front yard and sitting back to watch the offers role in.  But don’t panic.  A fair sale isn’t impossible and you won’t even need the help of St. Joseph.

You just need to embrace the fact that selling a home takes some elbow grease and a willingness to be realistic.

The first thing you’re going to have to be realistic about is the exterior appearance of your home.  Don’t pretend that a buyer isn’t going to see the flaking paint, dead grass and cracked driveway.  Be realistic about the problems and fix everything you can.

Secondly, be realistic about the condition of your home’s interior.  If your home features shag carpeting, avocado appliances and floral wallpaper in every room it isn’t going to appeal to most buyers and it definitely isn’t going to sell for as much as the updated house next door that had stainless steel appliances and new hardwood floors.  Stage your home to play up the good, down play the bad and go ahead and update the ugly.

And finally, be realistic about your listing price!  I know you want to sell your house for top dollar – everybody does, and you deserve as much return as possible on your real estate investment.  When your Realtor advises you on a listing price and backs that opinion up with cold hard data you need to believe what the numbers are showing you and list accordingly. 

If you’re realistic you’ll end up with a home that looks good inside and out and is priced to sell.