Should You Sell BEFORE You List?

Should You Sell BEFORE You List?

By Mary Anne Walser, Realtor & Attorney, 404-277-3527, maryannesellshomes@gmail.com

It's a hot seller's market in Atlanta right now. We don't have enough inventory for the buyers who are ready to purchase. So many times recently I have received offers on a home that I am getting ready to list BEFORE it was listed. This can occur when I am working with a buyer who is looking for exactly what I have coming up – or when another agent and/or buyer asks me “what do you have coming up?” and what I have coming up suits their needs and an offer is made.

So, from the seller’s perspective, is it a good idea to sell your property without ever listing it? Here are some considerations if you are lucky enough to have this dilemma.

From an agent’s perspective, I would typically prefer that a seller LIST the home with me before we agree on the contract. This way the home is exposed to fair market forces and we are sure that everyone who might make an offer on the home has the chance to see it and bid on it. Exposed to market forces, we might even get an offer above the list price or a buyer who is willing to pay above appraised value. So why would a seller EVER agree to sell a property prior to listing? Here is an examination of some of the reasons:

• The most common seller who sells prior to listing is the seller for whom showings are a real hassle.  My clients Vivian and Mike have four young children under the age of ten, two rambunctious dogs, and had trouble keeping their home clean, much less straightened up and staged for showings. They needed a bigger home as soon as possible, and needed to sell their home in order to buy their next home. So when I brought them a buyer (and an offer) that was more than they thought they would get if they had listed their property, they were ecstatic and chose to accept. This allowed them to get under contract for their next, bigger home and concentrate on the move rather than on the logistics of showing their current home and the fear that it would not sell fast.

• Another seller who might agree to a contract prior to listing is the seller who has time on their hands and for whom this is a low risk proposition. Let me explain. If a seller gets under contract prior to officially listing the property on the MLS, and the buyer terminates, the seller can always then list on the MLS with no ill effect. Typically if one contract falls through, the world knows about it because it’s noted when a property goes under contract on the MLS. With a prelisting contract, however, if it falls through, the only parties who are informed are the seller, the buyer and the agents, not the world at large.  If the contract doesn’t fall through, then the seller has saved the hassle of listing the property.

• Some sellers want to sell before they list because they don’t want to pay agent commissions (or don’t want to pay two sides of an agent’s commissions). Agent commissions are negotiable no matter what, of course. But sellers will sometimes sell without involving agents and/or using only one agent to represent both parties, hoping that will save them money. Of course, a great agent will always maximize your return even with the payment of commissions, so I feel this logic is faulty.  If you’re cutting out agent commissions, you’re also cutting out the marketing, advocacy, and market exposure that full agent representation provides.

• Sometimes a buyer who makes an offer prior to listing is willing to pay more than they would otherwise for the opportunity to snag a great property before it is exposed to the market. While this sounds counterintuitive, we never know for sure what will happen when a property hits the MLS. While we can often predict, we are sometimes wrong. A property that we think will be hot gets few showings and no offers. If you hold that buyer off telling them you want to list and test the market first, if you do NOT get better offers then guess what? Often that buyer has cooled and is no longer willing to pay what they were willing to pay prior to you listing the property.

So as you see, there are many considerations involved, and every seller’s situation is unique and must be examined in light of your specific wants, needs, and goals. I hope that you too are lucky enough to have offers before listing! But whether or not you want to accept them is a separate determination. If you are ready to sell, please call the Walser Team today! We will strategize the right way to get the most money for your property.

Mary Anne Walser is a licensed attorney and full-time REALTOR, serving buyers and sellers in all areas of Metro Atlanta. Her knowledge of residential & commercial real estate and her legal expertise allow her to offer great value to her clients. Mary Anne is a member of the Atlanta Board of Realtors, the Georgia Association of Realtors, the State Bar of Georgia and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. Contact Mary Anne at 404-277-3527, or via email:  maryannesellshomes@gmail.com.

Are You READY to SELL?

Are You READY to Sell?

By Mary Anne Walser, Realtor & Attorney, 404-277-3527, maryannesellshomes@gmail.com

How do you know when it is time to sell and move to your next home? For some of my clients, it is easy. They are outgrowing their current home and have more children than bedrooms. Or on the opposite end of the spectrum, the children have left and the home is much too big without them. Other clients just like to move every five to seven years or so. And sometimes it is a major life event – a marriage, a job change, a death – that creates the need to sell. But one of my first steps as a Realtor is to gauge your motivation to move. (Or, if you are an investor wanting to sell property, to gauge your motivations in selling so that we can target your goals.)

One client, Martine, seemed eager to put her home on the market. We staged, photographed, listed, marketed, and soon she got a full list price offer on her home – but then would not sign it. She panicked – all of a sudden, she decided that moving might not be the best idea after all. She was not finding a home to purchase that she liked better (within her price range) and she was second guessing whether she wanted to move at all.  She asked me if she HAD to sell just because she received an offer at list price for her property.

If she refuses to sell, is Martine in breach of contract? Stated another way, if a buyer offers exactly what the seller asks for the property, is the seller legally obligated to sell? The answer is NO.

When we put your home in the multiple listing service and offer it for sale to the general public, in legal parlance the listing is not an “offer” – it's an “invitation to offer.” This means that even if a buyer offers your exact list price and doesn't ask you to pay any of their closing costs, you are not obligated to accept the offer. And this is because the listing itself does not contain all of the elements necessary to create a binding contract. For instance, the listing doesn't state exactly when the deal will close, where it will close, how the deal must be financed, or any of the conditions of sale.

So as a seller, you can refuse even an offer that is above list price. You aren't required to sell just because you listed your home. Of course, it’s advisable not to list your home unless you are certain you want to sell your home. And depending upon the listing agreement, you may be responsible for paying a commission if you receive a full price offer but refuse to sell. But thinking through things before it gets to that point can save a lot of heartache. 

What I recommend for clients who are not entirely sure about a move is that we test their motivation by going out to see just a few properties currently on the market that they might wish to purchase. If we find properties that they can live with and live in, it makes it easier for them to agree to a sale when an offer comes in. Sometimes the “water testing” can take place entirely online; the seller does not feel as if they need to go look at properties in person in order to determine that the right property for them is out there. But one way or another, having a plan and knowing the purpose of the move makes for a smoother transaction all around – and no frustrated buyers threatening to sue.

There are also sometimes alternatives to selling that make more sense. If what you need is more space, you may want to add on or renovate your existing home. One thing that makes that very attractive is the deductibility of home mortgage interest.  If you take out a normal consumer loan – to buy a car, say, or to pay for a wedding – the interest is not tax deductible. But for a loan that is secured by your primary residence, all interest IS tax deductible (at least currently. Things could change as national fiscal policy changes). This is a bigger deal than most people realize. 

The best time to meet with a Realtor is early in the process. We can help you evaluate your options and determine whether selling your home and moving or staying and renovating is best. 

So KNOW BEFORE YOU GO. Know why you are moving and have a plan for where you are going to move; and keep your purpose in mind as you move forward. Knowing what you want is the only way to get what you want, so let’s figure that out before you put your home on the market.

Mary Anne Walser is a licensed attorney and full-time REALTOR, serving buyers and sellers in all areas of Metro Atlanta. Her knowledge of residential & commercial real estate and her legal expertise allow her to offer great value to her clients. Mary Anne is a member of the Atlanta Board of Realtors, the Georgia Association of Realtors, the State Bar of Georgia and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. Contact Mary Anne at 404-277-3527, or via email:  maryannesellshomes@gmail.com.

How is the Atlanta Real Estate Market? "FANTASTIC" (Always)

How is the Atlanta Real Estate Market? “FANTASTIC” (Always)

By Mary Anne Walser, Realtor & Attorney, 404-277-3527, maryannesellshomes@gmail.com

EVERYONE, it seems, is interested in real estate, and the most common question I get is “how’s the real estate market?” I always say, “IT’S FANTASTIC.” Because when you think about it, the market IS always fantastic for SOMEONE. Sometimes it’s fantastic for buyers. Sometimes for sellers.  Sometimes it is a fantastically BALANCED market.  Right now, as you are likely aware, we are in a strong seller’s market in most locations (since real estate is very local, the “market” varies widely from one location to the next, even within Atlanta, but generally speaking we are in a recovery phase where prices continue to rise).

So given the fact that any real estate market can be “fantastic” in some respect, at a cocktail party if I say the real estate market is “fantastic” I also have got to go beyond the “fantastic” and explain. Right now we’re in an expansion phase in Atlanta. Generally, we are in a fantastic market for Sellers. But eventually and inevitably we will again be in a fantastic market for Buyers.

But our human tendency is to think that when things are good, they will stay good, and when things are bad, they will stay bad. That explains those clients in the years from 2008 to 2012 who would say “I don’t want to buy now – the market is bad.”  In that time frame, prices were extremely low and inventory was high.  Those buyers were correct that the market was bad…for SELLERS. It was great for buyers.  The market has steadily improved since, and those who did buy in that time frame are now reaping the benefits if they are selling, since right now we are in a seller’s market – the market now is great for SELLING a home.

Psychologists have documented many logical fallacies and biases to which humans are prone – one of which is the “status quo bias.” The potential buyers in that time frame often fell into this bias. Making great real estate decisions depends upon recognizing any potential bias you may have, looking at the current market objectively, examining trends, and realizing that things will not always be as they are now.

If you look at real estate pricing over the years, starting when the US starting selling land in 1800, real estate prices peak about every 18 years, and the worst downturns are preceded by high prices and great demand.  Here are the two most recent 18 year cycle examples. In 1990, we experienced a downturn after the broad expansion of the Reagan years (when tax incentives helped fuel housing increases). 18 years later – in 2008 – another downturn, this time a huge one. It really needn’t have taken us by surprise; the depth of the disaster was due to banks giving away money far too freely, but most experts would argue that some sort of slump was inevitable. The real estate cycle is somewhat predictable.

So the next downturn? If you follow the 18 year formula, should be in about 2026. But of course it’s never entirely predictable, and it depends upon many factors. Interest rates, for instance. If they go up (they have risen a little, and will likely rise again this year), then buying power is greatly reduced. When the real estate market is improving and expanding and prices are increasing, there is pressure on the Fed to increase interest rates. This makes many new developments financially unfeasible and lessens the buying power of the homebuyer. So interest rates are an easy indicator that we watch weekly and sometimes daily. Right now there’s a huge uptick in activity because interest rates went up and homebuyers became nervous that they will continue to rise.

So for now, in Atlanta, the housing recovery continues. Interest rates rising will restrict that recovery, but there are other factors that will come into play in the next few years, both on the national and local levels. Our President Elect is a real estate developer, so while on the one hand, he will likely do what is good for real estate and loosening regulation might mean real estate financing flows more freely, on the other hand, immigration restrictions will likely increase construction costs and trade limitations could stem the foreign dollars for real estate that has helped bolster pricing.

Here in Atlanta, we are blessed with the fact that more and more companies want to move to Atlanta or expand their Atlanta based operations. This population influx gives us a buffer – even when prices go down again (as they inevitably will) as long as we have net population growth our real estate prices will remain strong.

So when asked “how’s the real estate market” – say FANTASTIC. But then dig a little deeper.

Mary Anne Walser is a licensed attorney and full-time REALTOR, serving buyers and sellers in all areas of Metro Atlanta. Her knowledge of residential & commercial real estate and her legal expertise allow her to offer great value to her clients. Mary Anne is a member of the Atlanta Board of Realtors, the Georgia Association of Realtors, the State Bar of Georgia and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. Contact Mary Anne at 404-277-3527, or via email:  maryannesellshomes@gmail.com.