If you are thinking about selling your home you should consider the following points:

Choose a Realtor® and not just a real estate agent. There are many real estate agents in California who just passed the real estate exam and that's the extent of their career. They may have another job somewhere else that actually pays the bills. These real estate agents earned the right to be called real estate agents but are not Realtors®. A Realtor® is a true professional that has joined their given association much like a doctor would in a medical association or an attorney with their given bar association. You should ask if they are a Realtor® or not, so that you can make the right decision whether to hire or not hire. A Realtor® is a member of the National Association of Realtors® and subscribes to a strict code of ethics that outlines what their conduct as a Realtor® should be. They are usually members of the California Association of Realtors® and their local board. We feel that a Realtor® is someone dedicated to a full-time career in Real Estate. And afterall, you deserve a committed professional to handle the biggest investment in your life.

Get a CMA to determine the value of your home. Have your Realtor® perform a Comparative Market Analysis of your home. A CMA should compare your home with other similar homes that sold recently in the area. Also, the CMA should compare and add in additional features that your home may have such as Air Conditioniing, a remodeled kitchen or a swimming pool. The same goes if your home lacks the features that are standard with other comparable homes. So if your home is the only home on the block with a small yard and close to a busy street, you will take a hit in value. A smart Realtor® that knows the area should be able to give you a "Fair Market Value" that takes into account the local market conditions. In other words, are people buying in your area or not. If not, your Fair Market Value will most likely be even lower than the same identical home that sold a month or two ago just because of the market conditions. In the end, the value of your home is determined by what a willing and able buyer will pay for your home in today's market.

Don't Overprice. This should be a rule of thumb in any market but especially in a slow market. Nothing will kill a sale more than a home that is overpriced. If you even question being overpriced or question your Realtor® about being overpriced try this litmus test. Put on your buyer's hat and start looking at all the homes in the area and out of the area. Play pretend with your entire family by getting a read out of all the homes on the market in a 100K range. So for example, say you priced your home at 800K. Get a read out and color pictures of all the homes in the area and out of the area (neighboring cities) from between 750K and 850K. The challenge to you is to find a home that has better schools than yours, more square feet than yours, larger lot than yours, and a better price than yours, etc. Once you do this, ask yourself this simple question: "What would I do if I was buying a home right now, would I even consider buying my own home?" If you answered an honest No - congratulations, you are honest with yourself and understand that buyers are smart and you will not be able to pull a fast one on these informed buyers. Lower your price NOW.

De-Clutter Your Home. Many Realtors® and real estate agents say to depersonalize your home but we feel that the word depersonalize may be a bit too harsh. De-cluttering is best because it makes your home feel more spacious and comfortable. As a rule of thumb, remove one half of everything in your home. If there is 6 items on your kitchen countertop, remove 3 items. If you have 30 books on your bookshelf, remove 15. Add space and make your home more appealing.

Spruce Up Your Home. Sprucing up your home is very important when selling your home. We recommend fresh paint on both the outside and inside. If you cannot paint the entire home, touch up paint is second best. Painting is the best value that you will ever get back when selling. Make sure you pick colors that are neutral. Our recommendation: drive by a new home construction and take a look at the colors that are being used. New home builders have a good handle on the latest color trends that appeal to buyers. The homebuilders have already done the research for you. If your home is vacant, you may consider staging your home with a professional staging company.

Get Internet Exposure In order for sellers to really understand the way that buyers find and buy homes they need to see things through the Buyer's eyes. Buyer's are overwhelmingly searching the Internet for homes to buy. The Internet has surpassed the newspaper classified ads to be the number one marketing tool for selling a home. Our network of websites will get your home exposed and sold. We have the following websites agreeing to market and sell your home: www.ColdwellBanker.com , www.CaliforniaMoves.com , www.Realtor.com , www.MlsListings.com , www.DanielPizano.com , asanjoseRealEstateAgent.com , www.aLosGatosRealEstateAgent.com , www.HomesForSaleInCampbell.com , www.HomesForSaleInSantaClaraCA.com , www.HomesForSaleInSunnyvaleCA , www.HomesForSaleInSanJoseCA.com , www.HomesForSaleInLosGatos.com , www.CambrianHomesForSale.com , www.SuCasaSanJose.com

If you have a question about selling your home call (408) 460-8401 or just fill out the form below.