Client Is Glad She Decided Against Trying to Sell Home by Herself

[Published August 22, 2013, in the Jeffco editions of the Denver Post's YourHub section and in five Jefferson County weekly newspapers]

     When Crystal Ganz walked into our office, it was to get help buying a home. That’s when she explained that she was selling her current home “by owner.”  It was a reasonable decision, she thought, since homes are selling so easily.  Long story short, she decided to let me take over the job of selling her home, giving her a discount on the commission since I’d be making a commission on the purchase of her new home.

     After the closing, Crystal was so glad she had hired me that I invited her to put her thoughts in writing.  Here’s what Crystal sent me:

     “What a relief!  Today we closed on our house! It seemed we would never get to this day. We started the selling process as a “for sale by owner,” thinking we could save some money in this hot housing market.  After a couple weeks of non-stop phone calls and people requesting to see the house with little to no notice, or just stopping by and knocking, we were glad to get the help of a professional.

     “Jim Smith listed our house and took the burden of sorting through and qualifying the potential buyers prior to them coming over for a showing.  His company uses a texting system that gives us the option of approving or rescheduling a showing which gave us some flexibility in showing the house and still trying to live in it with 3 small children.  Jim did an excellent job in taking photos and a video tour of our house and listing the house that very same day.
      “Jim Smith listed the house on multiple sites including his own, which seemed to have lots of interested buyers. The house was under contract in no time!  As we progressed through the selling process Jim did an excellent job of negotiating a fair price and helping sort through some unexpected issues with our inspection and appraisal.
     “I couldn't imagine we would have ever made it this far on our own having to sort through these issues.  The deal would have been terminated and, without knowing how to negotiate and bargain, we would have been back to square one; looking for another interested buyer and constantly showing the house.
     “We also are using Golden Real Estate to purchase our next home. We are to close on it in a couple of weeks. The service was equally as great, and we feel we have found our dream home, thanks to the excellent service Jim Smith and his company have provided.  Another great benefit of using Golden Real Estate is the use of the free moving truck!”

    Crystal spared you the details of the complications which arose, but suffice it to say that her buyer had an agent who knew what she was doing, and negotiating the inspection issues and low appraisal would not have been easy for her without an experienced agent on her side.

    I got a sewer repair demand reduced by $1,600 by providing a lower price from a different contractor, and we closed at a price $2,500 over the appraised value. Crystal knew that required an experienced agent.

    That experienced agent didn’t have to be me. My purpose with this column is not to say, “use me!” It’s to point out that selling a home is far more complicated than finding a buyer. Since your buyer will probably have a professional on his side, you should get one on your side, too!