The dreaded winter Cold!

Well I know for a fact that I am not the only one that has been suffering from a cold over the last couple of weeks. I believe nearly every second person I have spoken to has fallen victim to the dreaded wintery blues. On the upside Spring is only around the corner where hopefully things will start warming up along with my Body temperature.

I regard a cold or the flu as long, painful & unnecessary. There is a process that you have to go through that makes it feel like it hangs around forever. First it’s the sore throat, then it’s the body aches, then a fever, then a runny nose, then a dry cough then a chesty cough. Lucky for me this time I got to skip to the dry cough however this didn’t come without pain believe me. I was taking manuka honey, vitamin C & green tea (all natural remedies) with Coldeze, Panadol, Cough Lollies, Vicks, 3 Dooners & sleeping with a scarf around my neck which for the record is as uncomfortable as it sounds. In the midst of feeling sorry for myself – my mother made me realise that all this could’ve been avoided if I hadn’t had so many late nights. You only have to read my last few blogs to realise I’ve been enjoying a bit of a social life of late.

A similar thing could be said for properties that have been on the market well past their expiry date – Long, Painful & unnecessary. Like my cold there is some precautions that can be taken so you can be certain your property isn’t sitting on the market for long.

First rule is Presentation:

It’s starting to become more common for people to request our opinion on furniture & presentation of a home. We simply find it’s the little things that make the most difference: ie unclutter your fridge door, minimise furniture to make the room look bigger or more open. Anything you don’t need stick it in the shed or storage. Check which lights best show off your home – make sure these are turned on before an inspection. Tidy up things that are visible to the eye, as much as the children’s finger paintings are great it’s probably best to stow them away through the first couple of weeks of the campaign & also tidy bookshelves. Fix any little problems that you can clearly see. ie: Hole in the wall.

Second rule is Pricing.

The stories that you hear where a vendor gets a price well above the odds is the exception not the rule (so keep this in mind). By putting an unrealistic figure on your home hoping to get the ultimate price can do one of two things – you may fluke someone walking through & paying close to the figure or you risk your property sitting on the market for 6 months where buyers will immediately discount it – as there is a buyers belief that if it hasn’t sold there has to be a reason. There are 3 things to do which help you determine an accurate pricing on your home without feeling like you are short changing yourself. It’s about working out what you think it’s worth, you can organise to have a registered valuation done & an Agent’s opinion – the pricing of your home is usually somewhere in the middle. I understand agents can be wrong at times so sourcing an independent valuer is always a great way to get another opinion. It must be kept in mind however that valuer’s don’t determine what the market’s doing. Also from an owners perspective it is important to be active in the market place, seeing what’s on the market, what similar properties are selling for and also making your property competitive compared to what else is already on the market. Listen to you agent & put a realistic price on your property as soon as it hit’s the market.

Third rule is access to your home.

There are some investors out there that try and sell their homes with tenants still in the property & you can’t get through when a buyer requests an inspection. I have had one situation where I had to write to tenants giving them 7 days notice because I couldn’t get on to them with the numbers they provided. By the time I turned up to do the inspection I still had not heard from them. They were home when I did the inspection however they had failed to return my calls or reply to my letter. Don’t be fussy about cleanliness, obviously keep your home tidy however if the agent says the buyer really needs to get through it today as they are going back to Melbourne tomorrow – just go with it.

Following these simple rules will prevent your property from sitting on the market too long. As for the common cold the main solution to making sure it doesn't hang around to long is to rest up, don’t overdo it, eat healthy & take your vitamins.