This spring/summer we hope to sell our house and buy a condo which would be more manageable. If you live in a reasonable distance from West central PA I would like an estimate of what you think we should ask for it. It sets on a little less than a half acre of land and has 1400 sq ft of living space. The house is 70 years old but very good condition. I don’t want to contact a realtor agent yet as I don’t want any high pressure phone calls. Living room 12 X 20 Dining room 12 X 12 Kitchen 12 X 12 Family room 14 X 22 Den 10 X 8 Master Bedroom 12 X 20 2 nd Bedroom 12X12 3 rd Bedroom 10 X 14 2 Full bath There is a slide show on Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df-7zcY6V4Y Moderator's note: moved topic to more appropriate forum
The best advice I can give you John is to see what other similar homes are selling for in your area. Even go and view a few to see how they compare with your own house. Make sure you list all the amenities that are available around you: schools, public transport, shops, bars etc. These things are important to families. We're in the process of trying to sell a house that belonged to my husband's late aunt and did our research to see what price we could ask for it. Always put it on the market for a little more than you expect to get for it. Know the price that you actually want and be prepared to lower it to that price if you have to. That way you get what it's worth and the buyer thinks they are getting a bargain if you drop it to that limit.
John, there is a site called http://www.realtors.com that can zero in on homes for sale in your area. You can see homes for sale, the asking price, and what realtors are active and which are just "hobbyists." Eileen has given good advice, also.
John you have a lovely home and I am sure you can fetch a good price for it. Eileen have good advice and strategy to price your property into the market. The most important key that I always follow when I want to sell something is to be patience and realistic. Good luck.
Jbest, We didn't agree with our counties assessment of our home value the last time they updated for taxes, so we hired a real estate appraiser to get a fair market valuation on our home. This is the kind of person who has no interest in the total sale or value of your property. You pay them to appraise it and that is it. Check around with friends, neighbors, church members, barber shop, etc for referrals if you don't have any ideas of who to hire. Good luck. and on that condo thing...check with their bylaws before you sign anything. you may not be able to plant a single flower or vegetable if you want to. We have one here that is for older adults only and they allow NOTHING anywhere, even on the balconies, not even a houseplant. No community garden for them, not flowers/vegetables/shrubs on the property anywhere. very boring!
Hi John,..your house sure has character and is very impressive,..with three bedrooms its just what many people want,..plus you have plenty of outside space. Eileen and Jane have given good advise and a good link,..the latter will cut out the hobbists,..hopefully as soon as you engage a Realtor you will get good results and soon,..i wish you the best of luck.
Are you familiar with Zillow? www.zillow.com This site will give you an approximate home value as well as approximate values of the homes around you.
Everyone has given you good advice. Have helped stage customer's house's Advice we was given to sell my Mother's house. We sold it on our self. No dark curtains,. Stored lot of furniture. Told us only thing on kitchen counter-a Cookie jar. It was lot smaller 5 bedroom ranch, 3 bathrooms. But new roof us kids put on for Mother. I would have bought it-but no land and single car garage. Put ad in paper-less then 10 days sold. $10,000 more then asking price. Your should sell fast. Have Customer who will put her house on market. Was told if not sold in 90 days Company will buy it.
John, I did not say how lovely your home is & how much I like what you have done with the landscaping. I particularly like your backyard area with the terrace & ?barbeque area. Gardens look lovely, fruit trees, fenced in vegie garden, greenhouse, etc. I hope a gardener buys your place & will really appreciate what it has to offer.
Thanks all, I think I am going to use an independent appraiser. The problem I am having is, I have been on Realtor.com and have traveled around our area and couldn't find any thing close. There were significant differences some better some worse. Three houses that sold in my neighborhood required extensive repairs where as ours is in move in condition.
jbest, The houses they compared ours to didn't really compare to our home either, but it evidently was the best they could do, but the appraisal was much more realistic than the county's assessment.
The good thing about an appraisal is that you will know in advance how much a bank will provide for a mortgage. With the huge changes that continue to happen with real estate sales it will give you the most accurate numbers for the moment. My husband works in mortgage and it hasn't been that unusual for appraisals to come in much different than sales prices which quickly kills a sale. The buyer will have to pay for another appraisal to suit the bank, but you will have no doubts about your sales price. Homes that are priced right tend to sell quickly. County assessments are seldom even close to actual house value, and although Zillow used to be really close that hasn't necessarily been true the last few years. A good realtor can be your best friend. Start checking with friends who they might have used to sell a home. Spring is a big time for people to buy.
Ask what realtor others have used. in your area Some do not even have on line sites. And not advertised open houses well. You have very nice house. Should sell fast.
