[5-DayForum] 5 Day Method Failed but REALTOR got top dollar

[Betty Pauley]

I am a Realtor, have been a very active one for the past 11 years.  I sell 20 to 30 homes per year.  I have used the 5day sale as one of the arrows in my quiver.   The 5 day sale works best when you have at least two or three potential buyers emerge who know the value of the property and want  it as their home.  These are the 'retail' buyers and the ones you want to bring out of the woodwork by your intensive, time constrained marketing efforts.  This method works best for those folks who are under external pressure to sell their home, such as a job transfer, financial pressures or other reasons.  It also works best for homes that naturally attract the largest pool of buyers for that property in that area.  Here in the midwest it is single family homes under $250,000.  At any given time, there are enough potential buyers out there to attract two or three who will compete to own your home on that weekend.
 
What it does not work as well for here is investment property, higher end homes, homes in poor condition, homes with a 'major' defect such as an extremely steep driveway ect.  
 
The key to a Realtor getting you the price you want for your home, is accessabilty, condition and PATIENCE on the part of the homeowner.  If you have ever read Freakonomics, there is a study in there as to why Realtors get more for their homes than non-Realtors when they sell.  We know the process, we get our homes into showing condition, if someone wants to see it on a moments notice, we make it happen, and we know that we may wake up one morning with no one interested in our home, and go to bed with a contract from that out of town buyer who only had a weekend to find a home before flying back to close on their home elsewhere.  They might have been across the street looking at a neighbors home that was under the $200,00 price limit they told their agent, and they will see our 'for sale' sign and ask to see our home.  The agent will say, well its $229,000, but if you want to see it, I will try.  She calls the office, they call me and say 'there is an agent outside wanting to see your home'.  Well, instead of getting mad and huffy with the receptionist, and then calling my agent and bawling her out about the short notice, I say "Well if you will give me 15 minutes, I'll be out of here.  They go get a soda at the corner station and I leave.  Later that day, I'm getting an offer on my home, because it is better than the $200,000 dollar homes they had their agent showing them.   I can't tell you how many times this scenario has played out in real life. Sellers are in control of the most important factors in getting an offer (price, condition, acccessibility), the value an agent brings to the process is negotiating skills, risk mitigation, and knowing what options are available when a stumbling block arises that could potentially derail the deal.  I can't tell you how many times I've had to rescue a buyer from a mortgage broker who didn't know what they were doing and get them to an experienced, reputable lender.  I've called in every type of repairman to fix everything in a home, even cleaned a few myself when sellers left them dirty because they had presigned on Friday and left with the moving truck, then buyers arrived with their stuff and refused to close or move in until it was cleaned.  Ever tried to get a housecleaner in a college town on a Saturday or Sunday?  I've even had to find someone to remove a racoon and her babies from a chimney!
 
When it is an unusual property, then you have to sometimes wait for that unusual buyer.  You also have to cast a wider net.  As an agent, we understand this, but for the homeowner, they are sometimes blaming the agent for lack of activity on the property.  When a homeowner with an unusual or expensive property starts pounding on me as to why they aren't selling, it is only natural for me to respond with 'reduce the price' for the lack of any other options at that time. They simply don't want to hear 'be patient' and the right buyer will eventually find us. 
 
Sorry, I didn't mean to get on a soap box here.  As a Realtor, I know the pitfalls that homeowners can find themselves in when they try to sell  their homes themselves.  Almost every FSBO that I wind up listing has at least one 'buyer who got away' and they are aggravated and frustrated at a situation that could have been worked out if an experienced agent had been involved in the process. Yes, sometimes folks get lucky and everything works out smoothly and perfectly, and they are always quick to tell you about how easy it was.  But for every one of those stories are other stories about buyers who sign contracts and then can't get financing, freak out over inspections, or even worse, don't do inspections and then sue later on,  disputes that arise because the seller forgot to say that Grandma's chrystal chandiler over the dining room table doesn't go with the house, or want to leave the junk in the basement for the buyers who want it removed.  
 
My best advice is that if you feel comfortable, by all means use the 5day sale.  You have nothing to lose but a few advertising dollars.  However, I have seen many FSBO's underprice their home, or be willing to wait on some nice family to sell their home in order to purchase theirs, or even worse buy some story about why a nice family just can't get a loan right now and would they do a lease purchase?  Just make sure that you know what your home is actually worth , either by having at least two Realtors give you a CMA or getting a professional appraisal. Get it pre-inspected and don't accept any unusual contingencies, go for a quick close.  It ain't over till it's over.
 
You can always list with a Realtor if it doesn't work for you.  If its doesn't work it is not because the program doesn't work.  It is an extremely effective technique.  I have used it to sell homes that have languished on the market and have been able to produce multiple potential buyers from it.   Sometimes it is just the 'luck of the draw'  and like going fishing when the fish aren't biting.  Your technique may be fantastic, but if the fish aren't there or they aren't hungry, its not going to work.  You might try it a month later with a different result. 
 
Just my dollars worth for 2 cents.....
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