Mrs. A. Hill's house has been on the market for 6 months, in a southern New Jersey town, near the Delaware Memorial Bridge. Several potential home buyers came by to tour the house. At least 3 couples made offers to buy the house. Each candidate, although pre-approved by lenders, failed to actually get a mortgage commitment, so none of them were able to purchase the house. Mrs. Hill's listing agreement with her real estate agent expired after a 6-month period. The real estate market had changed and house values began to decline.

Many homeowners faced similar problems in 2008 and still have an unsold in a declining market.

Mrs. Hill decided to become more proactive in the sales process and got busy making her house irresistible to potential buyers.

Here's how she did it:

1.Mrs. Hill hired a new real estate agency to market her property. It was a local agency with potential buyers specifically interested in living in her community. The first agent had been a friend who lived and worked in another county.

2.Since Mrs. Hill had equity in the property, she decided to offer ?Seller/Owner Financing. She was willing to give a qualified buyer a loan to cover part of the purchase price.

3.The homeowner took a critical look at her property. She decided to spruce up the exterior and the interior

4.The homeowner allowed the agent to place a ?lock box? on her door. This gives licensed real estate agents access to the house to show their clients, without the hassles of major pre-arrangements. The homeowners just required 2 hours advance notice.

5.Mrs. Hill hired a professional cleaning service to clean the house before each Open House was held, giving the house had a fresh smell and appearance

These few actions allowed Mrs. Hill to make her property stand out from the competition. She was able to sell her house, with the help of her agent faster than she anticipated. Now that her house is sold she can fulfill her dream of retiring in another Virginia near her family.