REAL ESTATE AGENT NEWS

Top Ten Seller Sins
By: Paul Pastore

1. Priceaphobia: The fear that a property will sell for less than a premium price. Price and greed combine to form a drug like addiction to unrealistic expectations. Researchers are split in attributing this to heredity or stupidity.

2. Shagitis: A burning sensation due to the realization that a home is not a castle when placed for sale. Shag carpet is not coming back. Get over it and have it replaced. Halloween is one day a year. Orange counters are ugly every day of the year. Hire a home stager.

3. Pet Addiction: The feeling that everybody loves your pet as much as you do. Symptoms include scripts such as, "His bark is worse than his bite". Or, "The cat must like you to nestle in your lap". Or, "Don't put your finger in the cage".

4. Photorea: A need to keep dozens of old photos hung to distract a buyer's attention from the real property. A variation of this virus includes 'childhood incrementalism'. Monthly photos of the first born that are in chronological order as a buyer ascends the stairs.

5. Pack Rat Plague: Doll collections, old Coca Cola bottles, Civil War rifles, WWII bayonets, mounted swordfish, big game taxidermy, high school trophies, college dioplomas,10k race medals, Toastmaster ribbons, bronze baby booties, salt & pepper shakers, and Grand Canyon placemats. Prepack these items.

6. Additionism: What was the seller thinking when they enclosed the garage? Probably not the same thing a prospective buyer is estimating. Cold winter cars, hot summer sun, faded auto paint, and remodeling funds. Bigger is not always better.

7. Fried Fish Fetish: If you can smell it, you can't sell it! What do cigar smoke, kitty litter boxes, piles of backyard pet poop, and baby diapers have in common? Shorter visits and fewer breaths by agents and buyers.

8. 'As-Is' ism: If a stubborn seller says, "The buyer can take it or leave it as-is"; they usually won't. Buyers 'horribilize' defects. A broken doorbell symbolizes electrical problems. A cracked window means a faulty foundation. Water stains come before roofing problems and future floods.

9. Color Blindness: Webster's dictionary defines a real estate tour as, "Agents caravaning from house to house making fun of decorating disasters". Most color schemes are ephemeral. Navajo white, white washed cabinets, and flocked wallpaper are out. Less is usually more.

10. Audio Selectivism: The ability of a seller to hear only what they want."The buyer must be confused". "The appraiser was in a bad mood". "My neighbor said I wasn't asking enough". There is a difference between hearing and listening.


About the Author: Paul Pastore, ABR,CRS,CRB,G.R.I.,MRE,e-pro,RECS, is with ReMax Elite in Chandler Arizona. He has been serving the East Valley area of Phoenix since 1977.