1.Price it right the first time.

When it comes to pricing your home correctly, review properties in your neighborhood that have sold in the past three months.  Price your home below the lowest sale price (except for distressed sales).  If there are active listings in your neighborhood the price you select should be below that of the most comparable home to yours.

2. Model Perfect.

Make your home the neighborhood showplace.  Present up-to-date kitchen and baths.  Install granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, and new ceramic or hardwood floors.  Professionally shampoo nearly new carpets and replace all worn and stained areas with new carpets.  If possible, add a new coat of paint to your home’s interior (keep it neutral).  Examine the exterior of the home and repaint of necessary.

3.  First Impression.

Enhance your home’s curb appeal and get buyers excited the moment they pull into your driveway.  Simple plantings of colorful flowers, manicured bushes and a healthy green lawn will draw attention.  Make certain the yard is manicured throughout the selling process.

4.  Declutter

Remove all furniture you do not absolutely need.  Your home should feel open and easy to walk through.  Bulky furniture and crowded rooms will turn buyers off.  remove personal items, including family photographs.  Prospective buyers want to imagine themselves living in your home not you and your family.

5.  Set The Stage.

Ask your agent to recommend a professional to “stage” your house before prospective buyers begin coming through your door.  Staging companies carefully arrange home furnishings so buyers can envision their own furniture in the house.  An experienced stager can add a touch of class to your home.

6.  Financial Incentives.

If possible, offer buyers’ agents a four percent commission rather than the traditional three percent, along with closing cost assistance to buyers.  Closing cost assistance is especially attractive now that credit has tightened significantly and 100% loans are next to impossible to obtain. www.rismedia.com