Tips & Insights for Condominium Sellers

No matter how long you have lived in your condominium, it’s your home and the decision to sell can be difficult. You probably have memories and emotional attachments as well as possessions that will have to be sorted and moved, or discarded. Just contemplating a move can be enough to discourage some people from putting their condo on the market.

But once you decide to sell, you want results. And when you’re looking for results, there are some things to keep in mind:

Work with an experienced agent that is familiar with condos.

A lot of condo sellers start out by thinking they will save thousands of dollars if they can avoid an agent’s commission. But in her book, Waging War on Real Estate’s Discounters, real estate expert Bernice Ross demonstrates that “Homeowners who ‘save’ commission costs by representing themselves in the sale of their home typically net 5 to 15% less by doing it themselves.” Additionally, in this new market it takes longer to sell a property and more money for advertising that property. In life, you always get what you pay for. So don't be short sided - if everyone else is offering 2.5% for the commsiion to the selling agent you might want to offer 3% for the commission.

In addition to helping you get the most money possible in today's market for your condo, a real estate agent will help to manage the details of showings, inspections, offers, negotiations, and repairs while you are focused on getting ready to move.

Let go and let the agent do their

job. In this new market with so much inventory it is more imporant than ever that your place shows well and is clean and easy to walk around in.

You may have spent many years and thousands of dollars decorating your condominium and it may be perfectly beautiful and suited to your tastes. But buyers need to be able to visualize their furnishings and their own belongings in your condo, so your real estate agent may suggest décor changes that will enable them to do so. This is not a reflection on your taste; it’s a strategy designed to get you the most for your condo.In some cases your agent may suggest that you pay to have minor repairs made before the property is exposed to the marketplace You should also be away to from home during showings as most buyers will not speak as freely if you are there,

While you may want to listen and watch people respond to your wonderful residence and talk with them about living here, the presence of the owner is often intimidating to buyers, causing them to hurry through and fail to give your condo the consideration it deserves. Don’t be insulted by these suggestions; they are for your benefit. Just think how beautiful your next home will be! Imagine the escrow closing and the funds being deposited in to your acount.

For more information on preparing your home for sale, click here

Trust your agent to create a marketing plan and then manage the sale of your unit. Each unit is different and a targeted plan should be created for each potential buyer and the property that you are going to be selling.

While all of the decisions regarding the sale of your condominium are ultimately yours, your real estate agent has years of experience and an extensive knowledge that can make your sale easier and more profitable. Take time to consider your agent’s suggestions; they will probably end up putting money in your pocket. This market is changing by the month and it is important to keep ahead of the market not chase it down the maket as prices are declining and the qualified buyer pool gets smaller.

Real estate agents and their qualified buyers have many properties to preview and may request a viewing of your condominium with short notice. By providing your agent (or your building concierge) with a key to your condominium, you will give your property the best chance of being considered by serious buyers. Some literally fly in town for the day and then leave and are taken back to the airport.

Be realistic

Every seller hopes to profit from the sale of their home in Los Angeles and up until last August this was the case. Our market has seriously changed and there is more inventory on the market then we have seen for years. So if you have decidered to sell your unit do not over price it. Do not listen to the Agent that gives you the hightest numbers. Overpricing is one of the biggest mistakes that a seller can make and an Agent that takes a listing for too much money does a disservice to themselves, their company and to the Serller.

Every property has a prime ‘window of opportunity’ – a matter of a few weeks from the time it is put on the market when the maximum number of buyers and real estate agents will view it. You want to make sure that your unit looks its best and is presented in all the right places as far as advertising and most importantly price your unit on sales that have occurred and closed escrow not what others are asking for their current units. An appraiser will need three comparitive sales to bring the value in and they are being more cautious then ever when loaning to a buyer to purchase a propery.

Instead of attracting more buyers, overpriced properties discourage buyers and their agents – often those who would be interested and who are qualified after seeing the unit simply walk away and wait. And the longer they wait the higher the chances right now that the prices may come down as inventoru comes up. This is the basic law of supply and demand. Most buyers have many choices these days and have time to spare so there is not the urgency that there used to be for them to buy. If the condominium is priced realistically at or slightly below market value in a prime location it will still attract buyers and may end up selling in multiple offers that go over the asking price. Your real estate agent should provide you with a free “Comparative Market Analysis” that shows current and recent market activity in the area and the in the building you are considering buying in to or selling.

The appraisal process and loan process today is completely different. Most banks now look at much more than the FICO score and want to make sure that the Buyer has no late payments on theircredit report, no past due HOA dues and mortage payments. If you neeed any help with finding a good lender please feel free to contact me and I will refer you to a few different people to speak to as options. Banks now are very conservative and cautious in what they loan and to how they look at the buyer.Their lending requirements also change by the day and even I can't keep up with all of their latest requirements.

All of the above information is very helpful as you are establishing a realistic asking price for your condo. Please do not take the Agent that gives you the highest asking price. Pretend that you are the buyer or the lender. Sometimes I suggest going out and looking at properties in the same price range so you see with your own eyes what other buyers are comparing yours too.  

Disclose. Disclose. Disclose

Another big mistake a seller can make is to fail to disclose a defect in their property. They may be concerned that the disclosure will discourage buyers or that repairs will be too time-consuming and costly. But undisclosed problems can turn into lawsuits that drag on long after the close of escrow. Such legal proceedings end up being far more expensive than the original repair or a small monetary concession during the request for repair period which removes the Seller from any liability of making the actual repair themselves and then being responsible for the repair after the close of ecrow. I always also suggest that a Seller pay for the home warranty policy for the Buyer and also order ask that for an addtionla $20 for a CLUE report which shows the insurance history of a property for the past five years.

Even if you believe the problem may be the financial responsibility of the Homeowners Association, be sure to include it in your disclosures if you are aware of it. If you do not know all the details suggest that the buyer speak to the HOA direcctly. Condominium sellers must also disclose any pending special assessments and/or legal actions and share Association documents, including minutes of recent Board meetings, with potential buyers that may be suing the building management company. If there are any other items that may not be in the minutes or paperwork sent from escrow make sure that you complete the required disclosure forms completely and to the best of your ability so that the buyers has full knowledge of what’s involved in their purchase. Your Realtor will be able to answer questions and provide more information on disclosures.

Looking at the Big Picture

The careful management of the details is essential to a successful real estate transaction – and is an important part of your agent’s role. But sometimes sales get derailed over “small stuff” – matters of a few hundred dollars that seem important at the moment but won’t make any difference to either buyer or seller down the line. Also it is important to have an agent that represents you and works together witht the other agent as it is the agents that can keep a deal together or not. Many agents take the role on of their client and that can be difficult.

Marketing does matter! Especially in today's market.

Making sure that your condominium is marketed to qualified buyers and successful agents is a top priority for your real estate agent. Many agents actually cut back on their marketing which is the opposite of what they should do in today's market. Always ask your agent for a detailed marketing plan that describes both print and Internet advertising, open houses, networking, private showings, signage and other methods of promoting your condominium property.

The latest statistics from the California Association of Realtors shows that the majoriy of Buyers are on line daily looking for properties.So print advertising is not as important as it used to be. Online exposure is what is important - Blogs are important and email blasts are important. Networking with other agents, building managers and mailing to other owners in the complex are very important as weel. But a plan isn’t enough: your agent should also provide you with weekly progress reports and feedback from agents and potential buyers.Sometimes the feedback is not always going to be what you want to hear but you need to hear it - the truth is the only way to work -

If you’re ready to talk about selling your condominium, we are ready to help you. Contact us today at Selling@LACondoLifestyles.com or 310-278-6033