Quiz: 10 Questions to See If You Will Make the Right Choices When Selling Your House
The Lighter Side of Real Estate • March 7, 2023
You certainly don’t have to take classes or pass an exam if you want to sell your house. All you have to do is hire a great real estate agent who had to do both of those things in order to help you sell your house quickly and for the most money possible.
Even if you took the same classes and tests your agent took to become an agent, it’d be difficult for you to know everything you need to know. Much of the insight and knowledge that makes your agent so effective at getting you the best results comes from experience actually selling houses, not from real estate school.
However, the more you know and understand about the best decisions ahead of time, the better off you’ll be. So here’s a quick quiz to help you see what decisions you’d get right, and learn from the ones you get wrong so you will be prepared to listen to the advice of your agent when the time comes.
(The answers are at the bottom…but no peeking!)
- Before listing your house, you should:
a) Renovate the kitchen and bathrooms.
b) Paint every room in the house.
c) Leave it as-is and let the buyer renovate and fix everything.
d) Speak with your real estate agent about what is worth fixing up and what is not, and doing those things. - How should you determine your listing price?
a) Use what the Zestimate says your house is worth.
b) Add 10% to what the Zestimate says.
c) Use an amount close to what your agent recommends, based upon a thorough market analysis.
d) Add up how much you owe on the mortgage, how much you spent on renovations and upgrades over the years, and how much more money you want to walk away with, and use the total of those as your listing price. - Which agent should you hire from the list below?
a) The one who had the highest suggested listing price.
b) The one who is honest with you about the value of your home, even if you threaten to list with another agent who said your house was worth more.
c) The one who has the nicest car.
d) The one who is with the biggest company in the area. - When filling out the sellers disclosure form about things you know are wrong with the house, you should:
a) Only list the things you think are obvious and that the buyer or their inspector will actually notice or figure out.
b) Don’t list any issues you may know about; it’s the inspectors job to find these things, and if they don’t find them, you’re not responsible.
c) Be honest about everything you know is or has been an issue with the house and disclose them all.
d) Have your agent fill it out for you. - When should you let buyers come see your house?
a) On Saturdays and Sundays only.
b) Only when the agent has an open house.
c) Establish a rigid set of hours on only certain days of the week that work for you, and refuse to let buyers come at a time that works best for them.
d) Whenever a buyer wants to come see your house…within reason. - If your house isn’t getting many showings or offers after being on the market for a while, you should:
a) Reduce the price.
b) Get angry with your agent and ask for more marketing.
c) Give it a fresh coat of paint.
d) Blame the market. - When buyers are coming to see the house, you should:
a) Be there to show them around the house room by room, and point out all of the upgrades and details they might miss.
b) Get the heck out of there and let the buyer and their agent have the freedom to look without you breathing down their neck.
c) Be there, just in case they have any questions, but give them space so they feel like you aren’t there. Try to stay about a room away, so you’ll be able to listen to every word they say.
d) Not be home, but make sure you have spy cams set up to see and hear them. - If you receive a low-ball offer you should:
a) Get really angry and not respond.
b) Get really angry and tell the buyer to get lost.
c) Get really angry and give the buyer a firm counter-offer and tell them they can take it or leave it, but you won’t budge any more than that.
d) Stay calm and respond with a thoughtful counter-offer and see if you can eventually get them to come up to a reasonable and acceptable amount you’re willing to accept. - If a buyer submits home inspection requests for repairs or credits, you should:
a) Tell them that those things have been like that for years, and you’ve been fine living with them like that, so you’re not willing to fix them.
b) Hire the appropriate professionals to fix every single thing the inspector noted on the report.
c) Review the buyers requests and be willing to negotiate which items will be done and which items will not be addressed.
d) Fix everything yourself, even if they should be done by a licensed contractor. - When moving out, make sure to:
a) Leave it as clean as possible and don’t leave anything behind without the buyer saying (in writing) that it’s ok for you to leave behind.
b) Leave every single paint can with leftover paint from any time the house was painted since it was originally built, just in case the buyer wants to “touch up” some areas.
c) Leave piles of trash at the curb because the garbage collectors will definitely pick it all up, no problem.
d) Wait until the last minute to pack, and expect the buyers to be okay with you coming back to get stuff once they own the house and move in.
OK, let’s see how you did on the quiz! Here are the correct answers:
- d) Speak with your real estate agent about what is worth fixing up and what is not, and doing those things. (Sometimes it makes sense to renovate or fix things in your house before listing it. But sometimes you’re better off not spending the time or money on something that won’t produce a good return on your investment, or help get your house sold. Your agent can advise you on what to do, and what not to do, in order to maximize your sale price and net profit.)
- c) Use an amount close to what your agent recommends, based upon a thorough market analysis. (Zestimates—or any other online valuation—are often inaccurate, so don’t put too much stock in any of them when pricing your house. And while the amount you owe on your house, any money you’ve invested into it, and how much you want to clear are relevant for you to consider, they do not impact how much your house is actually worth on the market. Your agent will do what is called a comparative market analysis—also known as a CMA—which compares your house to several others that are similar in size, condition, and location to determine the approximate value your house is worth.)
- b) The one who is honest with you about the value of your home, even if you threaten to list with another agent who said they’d agree to list your house for more than it’s worth. (It’s not easy for an agent to stay firm about their honest recommendation on a list price when an owner wants to hear that their house is worth more money. But it’s even harder to do so when other agents are willing to let you list it for higher than you should. Sometimes agents will agree to let a seller list it for whatever they want, in order to just get the listing, and then encourage you to lower your price after being on the market a while. Unfortunately, listing for higher than the data indicates will probably lead to you having to reduce your price…and could easily cause you to sell your house for less than the initial recommendation.)
- c) Be honest about everything you know is or has been an issue with the house and disclose them all. (Your agent can’t even coach you on what to disclose or not disclose, let alone fill the disclosure out for you. And you shouldn’t try to hide anything you know is wrong with the house, unless you enjoy the thought of being sued for failing to disclose a problem. You should be honest and disclose everything and anything you know is wrong with the house, or has been an issue that you have resolved.)
- d) Whenever a buyer wants to come see your house…within reason. (Buyers don’t only look at houses on weekends or when there’s an open house. In fact, the most motivated buyers will most likely come see your house as quickly as possible, which may be during the week. The easier you make it for buyers to come and see your house at a time that works for them and their agent, the more quickly your house will get sold, and the less time you’ll have to deal with buyers coming in and out of your house.)
- a) Reduce the price. (You will most likely see all of the current buyers in your price range come through your house within the first couple of weeks of listing. If you don’t receive an offer, or the showings have tapered off after a few weeks of being on the market, you should consider reducing the price.)
- b) Get the heck out of there and let the buyer and their agent have the freedom to look without you breathing down their neck. (Buyers and their agents need to feel free to look around and talk about what they’re thinking and feeling with each other, without the owner present…in plain sight or otherwise. They don’t need you to show them around or point things out. So make sure you’re not home, and don’t eavesdrop on your potential buyers with any sneaky tech devices.)
- d) Stay calm and respond with a thoughtful counter-offer and see if you can eventually get them to come up to a reasonable and acceptable amount you’re willing to accept. (Some buyers come in with a low-ball offer just to see if they can get a ridiculous deal. But others do it because they just think they should, or don’t know any better. If a buyer comes in with an unreasonably low offer that has no data to back it up, stay calm and negotiate with them until you get them as high as they’ll go, and you can ultimately decide to take their offer, or tell them thanks, but no thanks…)
- c) Review the buyers requests and be willing to negotiate which items will be done and which items will not be addressed. (Just because a home inspector found something and put it in the report does not mean you will have to take care of it. Inspection issues are negotiable and your agent can help you decide which things to agree to address, and which things to decline. But whatever you do agree to address should be done by a qualified or licensed professional, such as an electrician, plumber, etc.)
- a) Leave it as clean as possible and don’t leave anything behind without the buyer saying (in writing) that it’s ok for you to leave behind. (Make sure to give yourself plenty of time by packing and arranging movers well ahead of time. When it’s time to give the buyer possession, the house should be in “broom clean” condition, which is a bit subjective, but basically boils down to being clean and nothing is damaged or broken. Don’t expect the buyers to want any of your stuff you don’t feel like moving, and make sure to get their permission before leaving anything behind in the house.)
Share this post
Every year, on the third Saturday of July, millions of people celebrate National Toss Away the “Could Haves” and “Should Haves” Day. OK… maybe not millions. But somebody probably does! While it’s not exactly the kind of holiday most people mark on their calendars, it’s built around an idea that’s surprisingly relatable. We all have moments we wish we could do over. Maybe you could have invested in a company before its stock took off. Maybe you should have kept that classic car instead of selling it years ago. Maybe you could have taken that job, started that business, or simply made a different decision somewhere along the way. Real estate has no shortage of “could haves” and “should haves,” either. In fact, one that’s been floating around quite a bit lately sounds something like this: “Maybe I should have sold my house a few years ago.” “Maybe I’ll just wait until the market gets better…” If you’ve been paying attention to the housing market lately, you may have noticed that some homeowners are putting their houses up for sale… and then deciding to take them back off the market. According to recent data , delistings have been on the rise as more sellers decide they’d rather wait than accept a market that isn’t quite living up to their expectations. In fact, they’re delisting at the highest rate since 2020, right around the time the pandemic began. When you think about it, it’s not hard to understand why. For several years, many sellers got used to homes selling almost immediately, multiple offers arriving within days, buyers waiving contingencies, and offers coming in above asking price. But, as real estate markets tend to do, they’ve changed in many areas. Depending on where you live, and the price range your home is in, buyers may have more choices than they’ve had in years. They may take longer to make a decision. They’re more likely to ask for inspections, repairs, seller concessions, or simply negotiate harder than they would have a few years ago. For some homeowners, that shift is frustrating enough to make them think… “Maybe I’ll just wait until the market gets better.” And for some people, that may absolutely be the right decision. Two Thoughts That Are Closer Than They Appear What’s interesting is that the two thoughts we’ve been talking about are actually pretty close cousins. “Maybe I should have sold my house a few years ago.” “Maybe I’ll just wait until the market gets better.” One is based on wishing you could go back and capitalize on yesterday’s market. The other is based on hoping you’ll recognize the right time to capitalize on tomorrow’s. They’re both completely understandable. In fact, they’re probably thoughts just about everyone has had at one point or another—not just in real estate, but in life. The catch is that neither one is particularly helpful when you’re trying to decide what to do today. After all, you can’t sell your house three years ago. And no one—not even the smartest economists—knows exactly what the housing market is going to look like three years from now. Or any other number of years for that matter. You can only make decisions based on what the market is currently doing. The Problem With Using Extraordinary as Your Baseline It’s also worth remembering that today’s market isn’t necessarily a bad market for sellers. In many parts of the country, home prices are still historically strong. In fact, if you ask many buyers how they feel about today’s market, there’s a good chance they’ll tell you homes are still too expensive and affordability remains one of their biggest challenges. What’s changed isn’t necessarily that sellers have lost all of their leverage. It’s that many of them have lost the extraordinary leverage they enjoyed just a few years ago. But now your home may take a little longer to sell. You might not have quite as many showings. Your buyer may ask for repairs or seller concessions that would have been laughed off during the frenzy of the pandemic market. None of those things necessarily mean it’s a bad time to sell. They may simply mean the market has become a little more… normal. And normal can feel disappointing when you’re comparing it to one of the strongest seller’s markets in modern history. Every Market Creates a Few “Should Haves” One of the interesting things about real estate is that every market eventually becomes the one somebody wishes they’d taken advantage of. Looking back, it’s easy to find a market where you wish you had bought, sold, or invested. The challenge, of course, is that nobody knows which market people will be saying that about until years later. Will some homeowners who decide to wait ultimately be glad they did? Absolutely. Every seller’s situation is different, and for some, waiting may prove to be exactly the right decision. But chances are, this market will also become one that at least some homeowners eventually look back on and say, “I probably should have sold then.” The only problem is that none of us knows which market that will be until we’re looking at it in the rearview mirror. That’s why “could haves” and “should haves” usually aren’t the best guide when making real estate decisions. They only show up after the fact. If you’re debating whether to sell now, wait a while, or even relist a home you recently took off the market, one of the smartest things you can do is have a conversation with a knowledgeable real estate agent. They can help you evaluate your local market, your personal situation, and your long-term goals so your decision is based on today’s realities—not yesterday’s regrets or tomorrow’s unknowns. And if nothing else, perhaps National Toss Away the “Could Haves” and “Should Haves” Day is a good reminder that yesterday’s market is gone, tomorrow’s market hasn’t arrived, and today’s market is the only one any of us actually gets to make decisions in.
Big Investors Are Backing Off and That’s Your Opening For years, a lot of would-be homebuyers have worried about the same thing. How do you compete with big investors who can swoop in, pay cash, and snap up the houses you want? Well, worry a little less. Because right now, those big investors aren't buying up the market. They're backing out of it. Investors Are Buying Fewer Homes Than They Have in Years According to Redfin, investor home purchases just fell to their lowest level since 2020 – when the start of the pandemic temporarily caused pretty much all homebuying to pull way back. Before that, you'd have to go all the way back to 2016 to find a time when investors bought this few homes (see graph below): Why the step back? Two big reasons. First, Washington passed a housing law that takes aim at large institutional investors. To be clear, these mega investors were never as big a part of the market as the headlines made it sound. They’ve always made up a relatively small slice of housing pie. But the law still targeted the largest ones, and it worked fast. According to Thom Malone, Principal Economist at Cotality: “When Washington announced its intention to curb institutional investors’ homebuying, the market reacted. . . Cotality data shows that investment by mega investors who own 1,000 or more properties retracted almost instantly. ” Second, the housing market has cooled. Price growth has slowed in much of the country, and in some markets, prices are dipping. That makes the math a lot less appealing for investors betting on quick gains. Lance Lambert, CEO of ResiClub, explains : “Ever since rates spiked and the Pandemic Housing Boom fizzled out in spring 2022, institutional single-family rental (SFR) operators have pulled way back from buying up homes on the resale market—the math just isn't as appealing right now. Home prices and rents are no longer ripping, holding costs (property taxes and insurance) have jumped, capital markets have shifted their attention elsewhere, and elevated materials prices make renovations expensive.” They’re Not Just Buying Less – They’re Selling More This is the part most people miss. Big investors aren't just slowing down their purchases. Data from Parcl Labs and ResiClub shows the largest institutional investors are now selling more homes than they're buying – and that gap is growing these past 4 quarters (see graph below): Every one of those homes goes right back into the market for buyers like you. And since big investors tend to own homes at the lower end of the price range, a lot of what they're selling is exactly the kind of home first-time buyers are looking for. As Malone puts it : ". . . this sudden dropoff in institutional investment is a signal to first-time homebuyers that there's an opening." Less competition from deep-pocketed buyers. More homes hitting the market. And many of them at prices that work for a first purchase . That's a shift that works in your favor. Bottom Line Big investors are stepping back, and they're adding homes to the market as they go. If you've been waiting for a better shot at buying, this could be it. Let’s connect so you can see what's popping up in our area. You may have more options than you think.
Home Price Growth Slowed Down. That May Be Changing. After more than a year of headlines talking about how home prices are going to crash , the latest data shows that price growth may be starting to pick back up again. And depending on whether you’re buying or selling, that shift means something different for you. The Numbers May Be Starting To Turn For the past couple of years, home price growth has been moderating – cooling from around 7% in mid-2024, according to Redfin (see graph below). But look at the right side of that graph. The pace of that growth appears to have hit its low point and started to turn. While a couple months of data doesn’t necessarily mean this will be a lasting trend, there are some other signs that this could continue. For example, fewer markets are seeing prices decline. According to ResiClub and Zillow, about 36% of the 300 largest housing markets had falling prices as of the middle of last year. Since the start of this year, that share has been shrinking. Now? Only 23% are experiencing those mild dips (see graph below): When fewer markets see prices falling, that means more markets are seeing prices rise again. And forecasts suggest this shift has room to run. On average, experts project home prices will rise about 2.3% nationally this year. And for that to happen, price growth would have to pick up a bit in the second half of 2026. But Remember, Real Estate Is Local While it looks like national prices may be starting to pick back up a tiny bit, that doesn’t mean that’s what’s happening in your neighborhood. National home prices are really just an average of hundreds of local markets. Some are climbing faster. Others are still cooling. But one reason the national average may be looking up is because a growing number of metros may actually be net positive for prices this year. Not long ago, the major metros were split about 50/50 – half seeing prices rise and half seeing them fall. Now, that balance looks like it’s starting to tip in a more positive direction. Just last month, more than half of the major metros saw prices go up, according to Redfin (see graph below): As Selma Hepp, Chief Economist at Cotality, explains : “. . . local markets continue to tell very different stories. Annual home price growth has changed little since the start of the year, but some markets, especially those supported by strong job and income growth in the West and more affordable Midwest markets, have seen notable acceleration in price gains.” What This Means for You Home price headlines can be confusing because they don’t always tell the full picture. Lean on an agent to understand what’s happening in your local market and what the early signs say for where prices may go from here. That’s the best way to stay one step ahead of the market. If you're buying: slower price growth has worked in your favor. You've had more room to negotiate and a budget you could plan around. If price growth is picking up in your area, buying now may mean paying less than you would later this year. If you own a home: you've been gaining equity all along, even while growth moderated. If growth keeps picking up, those gains could speed up, too. Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at the National Association of Realtors (NAR), projects the typical homeowner will gain roughly $16,000 in housing wealth this year. And if you're thinking about selling, this shift is a good early sign for you. Just remember, the market is still pretty balanced and buyer-friendly in a lot of areas right now. Home price growth slowed way down, and now it's showing early signs of picking back up. Whether you're buying or selling, let's connect so you can see exactly what prices are doing in our local market and what that means for your plans. Bottom Line Home price growth slowed way down, and now it's showing early signs of picking back up. Whether you're buying or selling, let's connect so you can see exactly what prices are doing in our local market and what that means for your plans.
