Table Of ContentFIX IT
STAGE IT
SELL IT
QUICK!
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FIX IT
STAGE IT
SELL IT
QUICK!
A DO-IT-YOURSELFER’S GUIDE
FOR RAPID TURNOVER OF ANY
HOME IN ANY MARKET
Robert Irwin
PUBLISHING
New York
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This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in
regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that neither
the author nor the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or
other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the
services of a competent professional should be sought.
Vice President and Publisher: Maureen McMahon
Editorial Director: Jennifer Farthing
Acquisitions Editor: Michael Sprague
Development Editor: Joshua Martino
Production Editor: Julio Espin
Production Designer: Todd Bowman
Cover Designer: Rod Hernandez
© 2007 by Robert Irwin
Published by Kaplan Publishing, a division of Kaplan, Inc.
1 Liberty Plaza, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10006
All rights reserved. The text of this publication, or any part thereof, may not
be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the
publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
September 2007
07 08 09 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN 13: 978-1-4277-5474-5
Kaplan Publishing books are available at special quantity discounts to use for
sales promotions, employee premiums, or educational purposes. Please email our
Special Sales Department to order or for more information at kaplanpublishing@
kaplan.com, or write to Kaplan Publishing, 1 Liberty Plaza, 24th Floor, New
York, NY 10006.
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Contents
Introduction vii
PA R T O N E : F I X I T ! 1
1. Curb Appeal—First Impressions Are Everything . . . Almost! 3
2. How Much Should You Do? 15
3. Projects That Build Equity and Buyer Enthusiasm 23
4. When to Do It Yourself—and When to Hire Pros 57
5. Where to Get Cash for Fixing and Staging 67
PA R T T W O : S TA G E I T ! 79
6. What Staging Can Do for You 81
7. Ten Tricks for Saving Time and Money on Staging 89
8. Room-by-Room Checklist 115
9. Staging When Your Home Is Vacant 133
10. From “House Wreck” to “House Beautiful” 143
PA R T T H R E E : S E L L I T ! 149
11. Price It to Sell Quick! 151
12. Finding the Optimum Agent 165
13. Selling on Your Own for More Profi t 177
14. Negotiating to Get Your Price 189
15. Closing the Deal 203
Index 209
v
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Introduction
Sell It Fast!
Once you decide to sell your home, you probably want to move
fast. After that decision to sell is made, most of us want to get it sold
right now, today, quick!
After all, there’s seldom any advantage in taking a long time
to sell. Homes on the market more than a month or so tend to be
considered “stale,” and agents often overlook them when select-
ing properties to show. Buyers think there’s something wrong with
these stale properties because they haven’t sold quicker, which
encourages them to make lower offers. And as the homes stay on
the market even longer, investors see them as low-balling opportu-
nities—a chance to “steal” a home.
On the other hand, you, as a seller, have to keep maintaining
the property at peak appearance, make the monthly payments, and
delay moving to that next home you want.
Of course, you don’t want any of this. You want your home
sold quickly, don’t you?
But, you don’t want to give it away. Any agent will tell you that
you can get a quick sale simply by lowering your price far enough.
Get it suffi ciently low and even the agent will buy the place! All the
world loves a bargain.
Yes, you want a quick sale, but you also want a good price,
hopefully the top price your home can bring. Hence, selling your
vii
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viii Introduction
home quickly is not your only goal. Your other goal is getting top
dollar for that home.
The real question is how do you get both—a quick sale and top
dollar? There are the fi ve elements to every quick sale for top dollar:
1. Fix up the property.
2. Stage the property.
3. Develop a marketing plan.
4. Hire the optimum agent (selling “by owner” is discussed in
Chapter 13).
5. Price it right.
We’ll consider all fi ve in detail as you go through this book.
But, let’s briefl y look at them, here:
Fix Up and Stage the Property
Everyone knows, or ought to know, the most important factor
in determining price for a home is location. (Remember the 3Ls in
real estate? “Location, Location, Location!”)
As a seller there’s not much you can do about your home’s location.
After all, you can’t very well move it to a better neighborhood.
But, you can do something about your home’s condiction.
That’s the second most important factor in determining price. It’s
also an important factor in determining how quickly you get the
place sold.
The condition of your home is what buyers see when they tour
it. By the time they come by, presumably they already know the
location and have decided that it’s acceptable. If you’re within the
buyer’s price range and desired location, then it’s up to your house
to sell itself. If the house shows well, you should get an offer. If it
shows badly, the buyers will likely move on.
Thus, as a seller, getting your price and a quick sale mainly
comes down to how well your home “shows.”
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Introduction ix
The Elements of Showing
There are just two things you can do to improve the way your
home shows: fi x it up . . . and stage it.
Fixing up your home means what it says: fi xing anything and
everything that’s broken. It means bringing your home back up to
the condition it was in when it was brand new.
Staging means something different. Staging means dressing up
your home. Think of it in terms of people. When a couple goes to
a ball, in order to shine, the woman wears a lovely dress and acces-
sories, has her hair done, uses makeup, applies perfume, and so on.
A man wears a fi ne suit, perhaps a tux, shines his shoes, makes sure
his hair is neat and trimmed, and so on. If done right, the couple
will get gasps of appreciation from others there. They’ll get noticed.
Their appearance will, in effect, sell them to the crowd.
With a home, it’s something similar. You stage the home by
simple things such as adding fl owers and plants and by removing
clutter. You can also do more sophisticated things such as install-
ing better lighting and even renting more appropriate furnishings.
(We’ll have far more to say about staging in the second section of
this book.)
When you’ve gotten your home all fi xed up and properly staged,
it’s ready to be seen by buyers. If done right, they will appreciate its
appearance, some even going to the extent of falling in love with it.
And that will result in high offers, quick!
Selling It
Of course, you also need to promote your home effectively by
hiring a good agent (or learning to do the work yourself ala FSBO
[for sale by owner]), getting a marketing plan, and going through
all the steps involved in selling any real estate.
We’ll cover what you need to know to promote your home in
the last section of this book.
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