Last year, as someone who has been teaching others how to invest successfully in real estate for nearly 30 years, I warned my clients that a housing crisis would strike within a year. I made suggestions to them that would eliminate (or at least mitigate) risk of loss to themselves, particularly those who were holding highly leveraged properties. I am pleased to announce that none of those clients who followed my advice find themselves facing losses. I even attempted to warn Bernanke of what was coming, but true to bureaucrat form, he ignored the warning.
And now, a year later, a lot of people with mortgages find themselves in trouble - there will be hundreds of thousands, if not millions of foreclosures over the next 2-3 years.
To make things worse, as housing sales begin to slow, sellers find it more difficult to attract any of the buyers that are still looking. The odds of finding a buyer to avoid foreclosure are not that good. People will be crushed.
That said, here are some ideas on how to attract buyers when others cannot.
1) Spruce up the first thing(s) a buyer sees - often the front entrance and driveway. This is their first impression - if it is not a good one, the showing will go downhill from there.
2) Have the place well-lit when being shown, and eliminate clutter, even if you must rent a storage unit to keep excess furnishings. Buyers like free space.
3) People buy because of the unseen things that attract them. Just before a showing, bake apple pie, or cookies, or brownies. The aroma pleases the senses, and triggers nostalgic memories that can help induce a buyer to buy. If you do not have time to bake, boil some water and drop in a couple cinnamon sticks.
4) Most Realtors simply mention the features of a property. But buyers do not buy features - they buy the benefits produced by features. Get a leg up on other sellers by promoting the benefits of owning your home. For example, if close to schools (feature), Mom can sleep late (benefit). If close to a lake or pond (feature), advertise lazy Saturdays fishing from the canoe that is included with the property (cost: about $300). The canoe becomes another perk.
I recently sold a home that had acres of lawn area. Now, most people do not look forward to mowing such an expanse, so the first thing I showed potential buyers was the shed - which housed a nice lawn tractor, power trimmer, garden cart and all the "toys" that make the yard work a cinch. When hubby saw those toys and heard I was "throwing them in" for free, he just could not control himself. I had him signed that same day. So, don't forget those little perks if you need help getting a property sold.
Now, if you hold heavily mortgages income properties, here is my final warning - sell off the lesser performing units and use the proceeds to pay down the mortgages on your more profitable units. You can always replace them when this is over.
Bill
Author of "The Simple Man's Guide to Real Estate"
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