So you’ve decided to sell your home. Congratulations! From this point on, your house is no longer your home, but an investment property, and it all depends on you to get the most bang for your buck. Consider hiring a REALTOR from the beginning of this endeavor. After all, their expertise will save you an enormous amount of stress and lost time.

The first reality to take note of is this: your house is worth what a buyer will pay for it- no more, no less. If you aren’t comfortable losing some money on the transaction, wait until home prices rise. Also keep in mind that modern success of home ownership is no longer measured solely in how much money you made on the investment, but also on how much you enjoyed the time spent in your home. Make sure to brace yourself because there’s a fair chance you may lose some money. But losing money doesn’t necessarily mean you lose out. If your home sells within a month or two, that’s a great reward because your home’s value is dependent on that buyer saying yes.

Another thing to be aware of is the enormity of online MLS search engines. Recent statistics show that more than 80% of all home searches begin online. Because of this, your largest amount of traffic will occur during the first month after your home has been listed. After this, traffic will dwindle as homes that have been more recently listed will be the first to catch a potential buyer’s eye. What does this mean to you? Price your home competitively and realistically from the beginning! There’s no sense in letting that wave of first month traffic endlessly tour your home if your attitude is, “I can lower the price after a couple of months.” Another good tip is to list your home in accordance with often searched parameters. For example, instead of asking $505,000, try listing your home for $500,000 or even $499,000. By doing this, you’ll open your home up to a wide range of traffic that originally limited its online search to a high end of $500,000.

Finally, having a good plan for home promotion is essential. This starts with knowing your target audience. If you know you are marketing to empty nesters, make use of online search engines, but don’t stress too much about smartphone home search apps. Likewise, if your market is young and tech savvy, make sure your online marketing looks the part. Don’t lose a large amount of traffic because you’re marketing techniques don’t match your intended audience.

In conclusion, selling your home effectively requires you to: price competitively, have a strong online presence, and use a REALTOR.

This is a guest post by Andrew Hill @ www.newhomesource.com

The Arlington condo market is really hot!  Condos are selling throughout Arlington with multiple offers and the inventory is very low.  Here's some stats about Arlington Virginia condominium sales and inventory for February 2012.

Currently there are 207 condos on the market for sale in Arlington.  That may seem like a lot, but considering that 216 Arlington condos sold in the last 90 days, 207 is not that many...  54 sold in the last 30 days alone.  Based on the 90 day numbers, there's only about a 2.875 month inventory of Arlington condos.

The condos for sale in Arlington range in price from $79,000 to $4.15 million with an average listing price of $512,397 (considerably higher than neighboring Alexandria).  Here's the breakdown by size of the condo:

One Bedroom Arlington Condos

69 on the market

Price range from $79K to $855K

Average listing price $329,287

Two Bedroom Arlington Condos

107 on the market

Price range from $170K to $2.05 million

Average listing price $536,038

Three Bedroom Arlington Condos

21 on the market

Price range from $350K to $4.15 million

Average listing price $1,072,521

Over the last 30 days the average final sales price of Arlington condos that sold was $444,413.    On average Arlington condo sellers are obtaining 95.03% of their original listing price -- showing that there's still quite a bit of room for negotiation. 

Condos sold in an average of 53 days on the market.  From surveys that have come back from sellers that have worked with my office, the average expectation for a sale is 60-90 days, so Arlington condos are selling fairly quickly which is pleasing to sellers!

The chart below shows the condominium complexes in Arlington with the highest number of units on the market. (Note: Jefferson Retirement is a 55+ retirement community in Ballston)

Interested in buying a condo in Arlington?  Search for Arlington condos here.

Thinking about selling your Arlington condo or just want to know the value?  Confidential and free market analysis of your condo's market value.

The Alexandria condo market is hot!  Condos are selling throughout the city and the inventory is quite low.  Here's some stats about Alexandria Virginia condominium sales and inventory for February 2012.

Currently there are 176 condos on the market for sale in Alexandria.  Considering that 185 Alexandria condos sold in the last 90 days, 176 is not that many...  46 sold in the last 30 days.  Based on the 90 day numbes, there's only about a 2.85 month inventory of Alexandria condos.

The condos for sale in Alexandria range in price from $100,000 to $2.1 million with an average listing price of $363,058.  Here's the breakdown by size of the condo:

One Bedroom Alexandria Condos

62 on the market

Price range from $100K to $450K

Average listing price $255,627

Two Bedroom Alexandria Condos

93 on the market

Price range from $135K to $1.45 million

Average listing price $375,819

Three Bedroom Alexandria Condos

19 on the market

Price range from $179.9K to $1.55 million

Average listing price $561,955

Over the last 30 days the average final sales price of Alexandria condos that sold was $269,469.  From this you can see that the lower end of the market is selling more readily and briskly than the higher end of the condo market in Alexandria.  On average Alexandria condo sellers are obtaining 93.49% of their original listing price -- showing that there's still quite a bit of room for negotiation.  However, some of that number for January is likely skewed from price reductions that occurred towards the end of 2011 or the beginning of the new year.

Condos sold in an average of 70 days on the market.

The chart below shows the condominium complexes in Alexandria with the highest number of units on the market.

Interested in buying a condo in Alexandria?  Search for Alexandria condos here.

Thinking about selling your Alexandria condo or just want to know the value?  Confidential and free market analysis of your condo's market value.