Recently, Audra had a closing for a house that received FIFTY offers on it in the span of a week. We asked Audra a few questions about her unique experience listing and selling this Countrywood Court house in Harvest, AL. Keep reading to learn more about what you need to be asking as a buyer or seller, what advice Audra would give other real estate agents, and more!
1. This house was listed a little over a week before the closing, and you received fifty offers in on it. This is rare, so what factors do you believed played a part in making this house such an attractive listing (location, school system, aspects of the house, time of year, current real estate market, etc.)?
Before I listed the house there were updates and fixes that needed to be made to the home. I advised the seller on what updates would bring him the most money and connected him with one of my trusted vendors to get the work done. It’s amazing what new paint, carpet, and flooring will do for a house hitting the market! Besides that, homes under the $200k range are hard to come by. So when they hit the market it’s extremely competitive. Harvest is also a great area because it’s out from the city but still very convenient to shopping and other amenities.
2. As a real estate agent, what makes the listing to closing process for this house a memorable one? What advice would you give other real estate agents when it comes to dealing with an overwhelming amount of offers or potential buyers?
This home will always be memorable because of the amount of offers that came in. As far as sorting through offers, I had to separate them in categories of what type of loan the buyer has. You have USDA, FHA, VA, Conventional, and cash. There are a lot of factors going into what each loan provides and what requirements the seller may have to satisfy the loan. Ultimately, cash is king! Sellers just need a licensed, knowledgeable professional to help them through the process.
3. What advice would you give people who are currently looking to list or sell their house? Or those on the market looking to purchase a home? Anything you think people often forget that is extremely important/can come in handy?
For people looking to sell, I would say just do your regular maintenance on your house and look for upgrades if needed. Something small could make a huge difference in how your home is viewed. For buyers, save as much money as you can for a downpayment and your own closing costs. In our Huntsville market you have to be prepared, it’s very rare that the seller is going to accept an offer with a buyer asking for those closing costs. Those offers will be rejected 9 out of 10 times.
4. Why can having an agent benefit you in different/better ways than going the "for sale by owner" route?
Listing your home as a FSBO can have several detriments. For one, buyers are wary of homes that aren’t listed with an agent. It makes them think something is wrong with the house or that something is trying to be covered up. Not in every case, but most cases. Also, listing with an agent makes the home seller more money. It gives their home more exposure, which means more showings, and in turn, more offers. The house I listed went almost $30,000 above the original asking price! If that were to be a FSBO there is no way that many people would have submitted offers and gone that far above asking price.
5. Any unique lessons you learned from this experience that you will use going forward? (ex: dealing with stress, the importance of open communication, team work, client satisfaction, etc.)?
I feel like I did the necessary steps in order to be the best real estate agent for my client. In these situations you just have to remain calm, take each offer as they come, and lay it out to see which one will be the most beneficial to the client. Essentially that’s what we are here for, to offer our expertise and to make sure our clients get the deal they so rightfully deserve. I was grateful for this experience and have already received a referral from the seller.
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