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Curb appeal and staging are important aspects of showing your house off to its best advantage. But, by themselves, curb appeal and staging won't sell your house. Even adding the sophisticated pricing techniques from Chapters 10 and 11 to the package still won't do the trick. Regardless of how realistic your asking price may be, you lack one essential ingredient to make a sale.
Face it. Without a buyer, you're nothing more than the owner of a well-priced, bewitchingly staged property with loads of curb appeal. You need a buyer to convert you into a seller, and the best way to do so is to market your house. This chapter can help.
In a red-hot seller's market, just sticking a For Sale sign in your front yard produces all the buyers you need. When you have five buyers for every good property on the market, advertising isn't so critical.
Unfortunately for sellers, the market isn't always hot. In fact, it sometimes gets downright chilly. When your neighborhood is a forest of For Sale signs and buyers are few and exceedingly far between, merely getting a buyer's attention is a major victory. The key to selling your house for top dollar - even in a dismal market - is simple: Implement a broad-based advertising campaign to generate spirited buyer competition for your property.
Advertising isn't a cure-all. Glitzy advertising won't sell a house that's in terrible condition, poorly marketed, and overpriced to boot. Give buyers and agents credit for having a snippet of knowledge about property values and a smidgen of discernment. Think of advertising as the setting for an engagement ring. The world's most beautiful setting can't transform a cheap zircon into a priceless diamond. A stunning setting will, on the other hand, heighten the appeal of an appropriately exquisite diamond.
Whether you list your property with a real estate broker who handles all your advertising or you're selling on your own, the same rules apply. Certain types of advertising are extremely effective. Others, while popular, are big wastes of time and money. The following sections describe types of advertising that get our seal of approval.
