Betting the Farm on the Trifecta

Product, Price, Exposure.

This is the "Home Selling Trifecta".

Trifecta is "a type of bet, esp. on horse races, in which the bettor must select the first three finishers in exact order" as found on dictionary.com.

When you are listing your home for sale you are doing just that, betting. In order to sell your home successfully you need to have Product, Price and Exposure finish in that order to win the bet. Why that order?

Product is the one you really have the least control over. It has "bones" and outside of a massive training regime it is what it is. You can wash and groom (stage) it so it looks great on the track. You can ensure the jockey has a good saddle and the right equipment (features like fire places and flooring) but all in all the horse is what it is. It needs to be the first thing you look at before anything else.

Price is KEY in selling your home. If you list a 3 bedroom semi in Eastbridge for $1.4 Million, I wish you luck. I am sure we will see you on the front page of the paper as the "Crazy Couple from Eastbridge". Your Product/Price ratio NEEDS to be in alignment. Keep an eye on the market in your neighbourhood, use the Property Tax Assessment information available to you and, if you are really unsure, enlist the services of a professional appraiser. We have seen strange things happen with clients that have left PropertyGuys.com to go to MLS. They lowered their price, some dramatically, in order to sell. On top of a commission that needs to be paid. When making decisions like this you need to consider what you are going to get out of it. Does a drop of $10,000-$15,000 plus the $15,000 in commissions really makes sense? You can reduce it by a portion of that amount and be priced properly for your market.

Exposure is only important once the first two have crossed the finish line. There is little to no point in going through the expense of saddling up ol' Exposure if Product and Price have no chance of finishing the race. Your bet is reliant on all 3 coming across in that order. So if Exposure pulls out in front of Price then guess what, kiss your sale good-bye. Ensure that Product and Price are in top form and then giddy up. Exposure can come in many forms. The key to Exposure is getting your property in front of buyers, like I had to tell you that. Having internet exposure is paramount these days. Hard to argue, you are using it now to get information aren't you? Just being on the web is not the only issue. You need to get buyers visiting the site. Is this not what agents have been talking about all these years? Their access to buyers? The internet has changed this. They do not "have" the buyers, the "elusive" buyer is out there looking at many websites, driving around neighbourhoods and looking in their local paper to find their house.

Get to the track early and have a look around at the horses. Fill out your slip for the Trifecta in order of Product, Price, and Exposure. Step up to the wicket and place your bet.

M