Real Estate and Reston, VA: Selling Your House Series: Money Doesn't ALWAYS Talk

Nearly every listing I have ever marketed has initially had at least one item that does not operate correctly or is not in desirable condition. Examples include, but are not limited to, broken ice makers, stained or damaged carpeting, broken Jacuzzis, wall paper (a big problem for most buyers),  and unattractive light fixtures.

In virtually every situation, the seller has asked me if we can just offer a credit at closing.

In virtually every situation, I recommend against this for a couple of reasons:

1. Lenders don't like credits for repairs. They like to know that the house they are taking on as collateral is in great shape.
2. Repair credits can often interfere with the buyers ability to seek seller concessions or get other down payment assistance; the ratios sometimes make them impossible to provide.
3. If you, as the seller,  don't want to make the repair or replace the offending item--usually because it is a hassle--what makes you think a buyer wants to take on that hassle? Usually, they are not interested for the very same reason that you are not interested.
4. Buyers cannot always imagine how the property will look with the change...and will move on to another place that is in better condition.

Think of it this way: you would never show up at a job interview wearing jeans and needing a haircut and assure the boss that you will get it taken care of later--or offer to let him pick out some clothes for you if you are hired . You would take care of it before the interview, after all, you only get one chance to make a good first impression.

Marketing your home should be the same way.  Present your home to its best advantage and it will stand up to the competition--because, this IS a competition.  Your home may have strengths that a prospective buyer would never consider because they can't get passed the dirty carpets.  If the first impression that a buyer has of your house is the cracked tile in the entryway, what do you think they will expect the condition of the furnace to be?  For many buyers the thinking is that if you don't care enough to fix the things that people see, you certainly won't care enough to fix those that they cannot.

Don't handicap your sale by trying to take the easy path and just offering to throw money at the problem...you will pay much more for it in the long run!