The Worst DFW Real Estate Selling Mistakes You Can Make

There are a hand full of serious DFW home selling mistakes that I see time and time again.
We Want to List it High, They Can Always Offer Less
When many DFW home sellers interview Realtors it is easy for them to get caught up in the excitement of choosing a listing price. The higher their sell their DFW homes for the more money they make the more financial opportunities they will have. With all this maybe the seller can afford to buy a more expensive home, pay for a child’s college education or take that much overdue vacation. Unfortunately, many uninformed sellers often choose the listing agent who suggests the highest list price, which is the absolute worst mistake a seller can make. If they do this they will ultimately pay for it in money, time and frustration.
Establishing a Homes Value
The cold hard truth is that it doesn't matter how much you think your home is worth. For that matter, it doesn’t matter what your Realtor “thinks” it worth (assuming your home is in Plano). The person whose opinion matters is the buyer who makes an offer. Determining the value of a DFW home is part art and part science. It involves comparing similar properties in the Plano MLS, making adjustments for the differences between them, tracking market changes and accounting for the stock of present inventory. This will help to determine a range of value. This is the same method an appraiser evaluates a home. And no two appraisals ever exactly the same. In most cases however, they are generally close to each other. There is no hard and fast price tag to put on your home. It's only an educated guess; the market will dictate the price.
Is There a Price That is to Low?
All homes sell at the price a buyer is willing to pay and a seller is willing to accept. If a home is priced too low, priced under the competition, the seller should receive multiple offers to drive up the price to fair market value. Because of this there is little danger in pricing a home too low. The danger lies in pricing it too high and selecting your Realtor solely on opinion of value.
How Things Start To Go Wrong
The seller of a DFW Home didn't even interview her Realtors. She picked the first one off the Internet because, "She looked smart." She priced her home at $275,000. This Realtor never heard the local Realtors laughing behind his back because he worked in a different area of the city. After 90 days, the listing expired.
Continues To Go Wrong
The next Realtor, also from another part of the city, listed the home at $265,000. A few more months passed. Eventually the price dropped to just under $250,000. Still no sale. Remember this Realtor was chosen by the seller on a whim.
More Than a Year Later
By the time the last Realtor was hired to list the home, the seller had grown frustrated and exhausted. Together, the seller and her agent priced the home at $225,000. It immediately sold. The sad part is the comparable sales in the neighborhood fully justified a price of $250,000, but the home had been on the market for too long at the wrong price, and now her listing was stale.
Agents Specialize in Expired Listings
I know a Realtors whose real estate business is totally based on contacting sellers of expired listings and relisting them at the correct. Don’t end up in a position where these specialist are contacting you. Worse yet, take action quickly so that you do not become one of those many Dallas foreclosures.
How much money does an expired listings cost a seller? The financial loss often exceeds the extra mortgage payments paid and goes beyond the uncompensated hassle factor of trying to keep a home spotless during showings. It affects the value that a buyer ultimately chooses to pay because it's a stale, dated, a market-worn home that was overpriced for too long. Don't let this happen to you. Higher the right Realtor and list at the right price from the beginning and your house will sell.

Dallas Real Estate – Low Ball Offers

Dallas real estate buyers who are in a position to invest in a home in this buyers market are in the advantageous position of being more likely to get there low ball offer accepted. But whether the market is a buyer’s market, a seller market or some in between, lowball offers can result in big savings to a buyer if they are presented and negotiated properly. Let's take look at what NOT do when making a lowball offer:
Common Mistakes Made by Lowball Buyers
• Unqualified to Pay More. Don't tell the seller your price is fair because that's how much the lender has qualified you to buy. Sellers don't care what you can or cannot afford to buy. If you can't afford to buy the house, that's not the seller's problem; it's yours.
• I’m Paying Cash so my Offer is Better. It's all cash to the seller in the end. Most buyers don't seem to realize that. If a property will appraise at selling price and the buyer's credit is acceptable, a conventional loan transaction will close just the same as a cash deal. Consider it a wash. One of the main advantage to offering cash for a home though, is that it removes the financing contingency, the right for a buyer to walk away if a loan isn't approved. But most loan contingencies follow the same number of days as other contingencies. It's not really a big selling point.
• Walking Away. Some buyers get all bent out of shape and walk away from their Dallas real estate transaction when the seller counters their offer at more than the buyer was prepared to pay. Maybe the counter was the list price. Maybe less. It really doesn't matter that much. The point is the doors of negotiations have opened up.
Strategies for Getting the Lowball Offer Submitted
• Find out the Seller's Motivation. If you don't know why the property is being sold, you will need to find out what the seller’s needs are or won’t close the deal.
• Write a Straight Forward Offer. Dot T's and cross I's. Shorten inspection and option periods, waive reduce or some contingencies and submit proof of funds of a pre-approval letter from a lender. Don't give the listing agent a reason to question your ability to close. Appear decisive, qualified and ready to close.
• Always Counter the Counter Offer. It goes without saying that the first counter is only an invitation for the buyer to offer a second counter offer.
• Take Attention Away From Price. There are many other considerations than the sales price. It's a good move to change tactics and ask for other concessions such as seller paid closing cost, repair credits, longer escrow periods, etc.
• Give a Logical Reason Why Your Lowball Offer is Fair. Don't insult the Realtor by handing over a list of comparable sales from the DFW MLS. Show them that you have done your due diligence. Make notes on each sale that compares it to the property that you are making an offer on. Maybe the higher priced homes had remodeled kitchens or bathrooms. If the home you want to buy is not updated, then knock off a reasonable figure reflecting the remodeling work from the seller's list price.
When Your Lowball Offer is Rejected
Don't pack up and go home with your tail between your legs. Just be patient and wait. Sellers have their reasons for rejecting offers. Maybe you made an offer on a new listing, when the seller thinks that a really great offer is just around the corner. Let them sit out on the market for awhile. After a month or two has gone by, resubmit your same offer. Just cross off the date, but leave enough of it so the seller can see how long it's been since you last made an offer. Then write in the new date and resubmit. Will a low ball tactic work for you? In most cases no but if you have the time and patience you can find a great value in a Dallas home that meets all your needs.

Pending DFW Real Estate Going Back on the Market

When pending DFW real estate sales go back on the market as an active listing, it arouses many people’s suspicions in the area. Everyone wonders what went wrong with the closing? Why did the transaction fall apart? It’s possible it was canceled Because of seller’s remorse, but that's very unlikely. Many DFW home owners keep an eye on the for sale signs in their neighborhoods. It's common to see a pending sign pop up after two or three months on the market if the home is priced properly from the beginning.

Why Pending DFW Home Sales Go Bad
• Buyer's Remorse
Buyers sometimes get cold feet. In many states, standard contracts give buyers 7-10 days to do inspections and their due diligence. During this time, buyers can cancel their contract for any reason, but the most common reason is fear of buying a home. During this period, buyers have a right to get their deposit back for any reason if they decide to cancel. It is the job of the DFW Realtor to manage their buyers fears.
• Home Inspections
To the non-professional home buyer, homes generally look the same: four walls, a floor and a roof. But to a professional home inspector, every crack in the wall and every spot on the ceiling could be the beginning trouble. Damp basements, leaking roofs and malfunctioning HVAC systems are three significant problems that an average buyer can't reasonably inspect without professional assistance. Once a home inspector points out problems in a home, buyers tend to immediately start panicking. All houses have problems, even newly constructed homes. Sometimes buyers demand that sellers replace older appliances or fix pre-existing conditions that make them uncomfortable. Buyers may ask for a credit from the seller as compensation for needed repairs. If the seller refuses to do either of those options, then the pending sale may cancel and the house goes back on the market. If you are buying a DFW foreclosure home it is that much more important that you utilize the service of a professional home inspector.
• Low Appraisals
Most home buyers need to obtain a mortgage to buy a home. To protect the lender's position, the lender will ask a buyer to pay for an appraisal to determine the value of the home. If the appraisal comes in less than the sales price, here are the options:
1. Pay the difference in cash.
2. Order another appraisal from a new appraiser at an additional cost.
3. Supply the underwriter with comparable sales supporting the sales price, hoping to change the appraised value.
4. Ask the seller to reduce the price.
If the parties cannot agree to work out one of these options, the closing will fall apart.
• Mortgage Loan Rejection
Until the public records are searched by a title company or lawyer, buyers might not have knowledge of liens or judgments filed against them. Unless these liens are removed, a lender will not lend, and the buyer's loan can be denied. Buyers who don't know any better sometimes increase their debt ratios by financing large purchases while waiting for their mortgage loan to close. Taking out a loan for a new car or financing the purchase of furniture, taking a vacation can make a buyer ineligible for a mortgage loan. If the loan is rejected because of a buyer's impulse financing, the pending sale will go back to active status.
• Contingent on Buyer's Home Sale
Buyers can lose a home sale if the contract is contingent upon the sale of the buyer's home first and that home has not sold in the time specified. Few buyers can afford to carry two mortgages at the same time. Depending on the contingency agreement clause, sellers might also retain the right to kick out a contingent buyer and cancel the contract if another buyer wants to buy the home without a contingency.