Can You Handle The Truth Regarding The Value Of Your Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Home Or Condo
July 20, 2008

Are you serious about selling your Fort Lauderdale real estate home or condo? I mean really serious. I don’t mean the “if I get my price” laissez-faire attitude. I mean the I REALLY want to SELL my house. Ok, then prove it! Many of us looking at listings think you don’t. So prove us wrong…if you can. I dare ya!
I see so many sellers trying to sell their Fort Lauderdale real estate home or condo and really having absolutely no success in doing so. The biggest reason by far that your home is not selling is that either you or your agent have no idea what your home is worth. It’s that simple.
Everything, and I do mean EVERYTHING will sell at the right price.Let go of your bad realtor instilled myths and your own preconception of what your home may be worth. It’s time to face the cold hard reality of why your home isn’t selling and what it is really worth.
1. If an agent is going to price your home, make sure they actually can verify that homes in your neighborhood have actually CLOSED at or below the value they or you think your home is worth. If they can’t show you at least 3 or more CLOSED sales at or above your estimated value then your home won’t sell.
2. We’re talking CLOSED sales people. Not actives. No one cares what a real estate agent has a home priced at. That is wholly irrelevant. Yep, I said it, the list price of homes in your Fort Lauderdale real estate neighborhood does not show value (here’s a hint…that’s why the sign is still in the ground)
3. The closed sales that you or your agent do find have to be closed within the last 90-180 days MAX! Don’t let anybody show you a house that closed last year. It means absolutely nothing.
4. Most of those improvements that you have done to the home…sorry, most of them don’t mean squat. Natta, nil..nothing, fuhgettabout it. I know you thought that your new tile floor would be pretty or those new appliances would help, or even that remodelled kitchen…well sorry, in this market they may help with appeal. But unless it was a major remodeling and updating job, like maybe an addition or completely new kitchen, then chances are your money’s been wasted.
5. Here’s the one that really hurts. In seminars that I participated in last year, I was teaching other agents to watch out for the impact foreclosures were going to have on the Fort Lauderdale real estate market. I told them that soon foreclosures would be so abundant that they would be setting the market price. Well what do you know? Unless you have been living under a rock (as many agents have) you now see that foreclosed bank owned properties in the Fort Lauderdale real estate market are indeed setting the values.
So guess what, if you have a lot of foreclosed homes in your community, kiss the baby on your expected price and wake up to you new foreclosure-influenced value.
6. Check the Days On Market (DOM) of some of the homes for sale in your neighborhood. You’ll be surprised to see some of them have been for sale for months on end. They’re never going to sell because no one is going to pay what they are asking and either the agent or homeowner are being stubborn and obtuse.
7. Ask your agent to perform a complete regression analysis on your home, most won’t know what it is or how to perform one but suffice it to say it can be very telling. Here’s a hint. If after taking into account all of the closed homes in your neighborhood and you have arrived at a price relative to those closed homes…then take a peek at the actives and see how many are priced BELOW even that number.
Recently the pre-eminent appraiser in the country, Jonathan Miller was interviewed on Real Estate Radio USA.
Jonathan Miller from Miller Samuel [49:56m]: | Play in Popup | Download
If you have the time, you really need to hear what Miller said about real estate agents and their ability to place a valuation on a home.
Okay, you still with us…you okay? Well now that you picked yourself up off of the floor you might be getting some idea as to what your home is worth. It is not uncommon to see homes in some neighborhoods dropping $5,000.00 - $20,000.00 or more PER WEEK!
Bottom line is this, if you want to sell you have to roll up your sleeves, do your homework and be realistic. It also helps you have a Fort Lauderdale real estate agentwho is willing to be honest and open with you. Many agents tell you what you want to hear becasue they are willing to take any listing at the hope that some sucker will come along and they might be able to rake in a commission six months from now.
I bet you didn’t know that many agents are taught that they have completed “their” sale once they have obtained your listing. Seriously, many agents only consider themselves listing agents and they are essentially done with their work on your behalf once they have obtained your listing.
No wonder your home isn’t selling. They, for the most part, have moved on.
I don’t need the practice. I only deal with sellers who have their head about them and are willing to hear the truth about the value of their Fort Lauderdale real estate home or condo.
If you really want a true assessment of value on your home you need to call a licensed, and certified appraiser NOT recommended by a real estate agent. You want a true appraisal of your property not influenced by an agent. It will cost you about $350-$400 but it is really worth it.
If that is too expensive and you want a true un-biased opinion of value, fill out the form below and I will perform a complete comprehensive valuation on your home at no cost and email you a report. This service is completely free. At least you’ll see what you are dealing with and will have a realistic estimated value of what your house is worth.
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If you are looking to sell your home, I’d hurry as what your home is worth today is not necessarily what it will be worth tomorrow.
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Fort Lauderdale Real Estate
Fort Lauderdale Homes And Condos For Sale
If you are interested in learning more about buying a home or condo in Fort Lauderdale or anywhere in South Florida; or if you need any information about the Fort Lauderdale real estate market, please feel free to contact me and it would be my pleasure to assist you.You can contact me at the number shown below or please feel free to contact me by the form below and I, or one of my assistants, will be sure to get right back to you within a few hours, if not sooner.
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Robin Sing-Cunningham
robins@robinashley.com
Access USA Realty
Local Fort Lauderdale | South Florida : 954-709-7461
My Assistants:
Barry Johnson: bjohnson@robinashley.com





