The real estate market has slowed down in many areas that were booming over the last few years. Sellers in those areas got spoiled. It was only necessary to put a sign out front, and buyers came. Homes sold in a matter of days. Says Barbara Kohut, a realtor in the Chicago suburbs: "Houses that would have sold in less than two days last year now stay on the market for 60 days." This is no longer happening. If you want to sell your home in a slow area, what do you do?



Price It Right

Pricing your home is the number one key. Even if you have had your home appraised in the past year we suggest you have it appraised again just before listing it on the market. Set your price according to the appraisal and the comps in your area. Over pricing your home will turn potential buyers away immediately. To get a realistic sense of what your home is worth now, check out sales in your neighborhood over the past six months. You can typically find this information online at your local county assessor's site, but you'll need a good real estate agent to put the numbers in context. What matters here is the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the square footage and other features that may be in particular demand in your area, such as great views or proximity to transportation.

Once you've set an irresistible price, make sure the word gets out. At a minimum, your broker should place your home on the local Multiple Listing Service, a database of properties for sale, and advertise in the local newspaper or via direct mail. Since not all properties on the MLS show up online, it's also imperative to list your home on the realtor's Website — some 70% of home buyers now search the Net for prospects. You'll get the most traffic if your broker's site is easy to navigate (just one or two clicks to get to your listing) and has multiple still shots of the interior and exterior of the house.

Give Your House a Makeover

Begin your marketing by putting up a “for sale" sign. About 10 percent of sales come from this source in a slow market. It’s not like the days when one put up a sign and buyers came in droves, but it is still worth doing. Lowes and Home Depot both sell inexpensive signs. Get one and install it.

Upload your property to one or more Internet multiple listing sites for fsbo properties. Choose one that encourages adding photos to listings. The more photos the better. Buyers love pictures. Make sure the site doesn’t have a bunch of listings that have already been sold. Buyers get put off by sites where every property they call about has already been sold. Find a site that gives your property its own web address.

Before your first showing, clean the house like you've never cleaned before. Organize your furniture to draw attention to the nicest features of your home, such as hardwood floors or a fireplace, and pull back the curtains if you have a great view. You might even seek a professional stager's help in showing off your abode. While these steps help sell homes in any market, they move from optional to essential when prices soften.

Offer Incentives

To make a sale in a slow market, you may also have to sweeten the deal. Small gestures can often tip the scales. If you're planning on redecorating when you move into your next digs, for example, consider throwing in your curtains or dining room set. More sellers are also offering a home warranty. Sold through agents or directly through providers like American Home Shield for $400 or so, these contracts cover the cost to replace or repair major appliances that break within a year of a sale.

The point is doing do just one thing. Use your head. Put out as many marketing ambassadors for your home as you can figure out how to. The truth is people don’t really sell homes. What they do is bring them to the attention of enough people who are shopping for a home that a buyer inevitably emerges. Present your home to enough potential buyers, and it will sell even in a slow market.