Harney in the Tribune: Reasons to sell your home now

Waiting for "spring market"? It's now baby!

Mary Umberger wrote a timely Sunday Tribune article with home selling advice from nationally known real estate trainer and consultant Steve Harney.

One of the most common questions my business partner and I get as Realtors is "When do I put my home on the market?". Even many agents have to ask this question! We always advise clients and consumers to ready their home and place it on the real estate market as soon as they know they want (or need) to sell. No timing involved now... just do it.

There are several reasons noted by Harney in Sunday's Tribune article dealing with the greater market including low mortgage interest rates for buyers (ding ding ding!) and looming bank foreclosure inventory set to hit the market. Here are a few more related nuggets we suggest to our clients:

1. You are only one short sale away in your building from affecting your condo or house value. A neighbor's distressed situation will put pressure on overall pricing.

2. Sell while things are quiet. If the situation is stable on your street or in your building, it will be more attractive to buyers. A condo special assessment, loud new construction nearby, more selling competition... these and many more factors will make it harder to sell.

3. It can take longer than you think to get show ready. If you know you want to and/or need to sell, contact us now to put together the quickest route to the market. Repairs and staging time can delay you from catching a buyer and moving on sooner.

We create specific plans for each situation. However, it's better to sell when you know the factors rather than when there are surprises later. A good example is when I sold my own home earlier this year. I should have put my home on the market in the beginning of 2010 (when I was aggressively looking for a single family house and while the buyer's tax benefit was in effect). I waited to list my home for sale until I found another house to buy consequently losing money on my sale when things slowed down after the credit incentive expired.