Is this a good time to sell my house?

If I had a buck for each time I was asked that question,  I'd be lookin' at an early retirement.  It's a simple question, but the answer never is.

The best answer I can initially provide isn't actually an answer at all.  I need to start by asking another seemingly simple question: "Why do you want to sell?"

Strategically asking guiding questions in order to arrive at the sellers' motivating factors is the first best thing I can do for my clients.

Follow this real-life example taken from a recent interaction at an open house:

• Me - So you're looking to sell your home.  Is it your primary residence?
• Client - Yes it is.
• Me - If you list you home for sale right now, is your intention to find another home locally, or are you moving out of the area? 
• Client - We would like to buy another home in a nearby community.
• Me - Are you looking for something bigger? Smaller?  Something similar, but in  a different neighborhood?  Ideally, where would you like to be?
• Client - Well, our kids have all moved out, at least for now, so we'd like to downsize a bit and simplify our lives.  We like the south side of Redlands.
• Me -  Hmmm.  South side?  Are you looking toward a vintage/turn of the century style home?  If so, I'm not certain that those homes would actually result in 'simplifying' your life.  Downsizing, yes.  But many of those homes were built in the late 1800s and early 1900s and some will require substantial restoration efforts which can be both costly and time consuming.  
• Client - Exactly!  That's what we're hoping to find.  My husband is quite the handyman and we'd love the opportunity to restore one of the old Victorian style homes in that area.  It's really been a dream of ours for what seems like forever!
• Me - OK, now we're getting somewhere.  So if I found you the right place in Redlands; a place you could restore and bring back some its original charm, would you want to live in the home during the restoration process?
• Client - Well...not ideally, I guess. Now that you mention it, it might not be very convenient living there when we're ripping the place apart!
• Me - Do you have the means to purchase and restore this new property without having to sell your primary residence?  If so, living in your current home while you're restoring your new property would ensure both a quicker restoration time-frame as well as a more comfortable one!  If at all possible, I'd suggest holding off on selling your current home (Yes, I advised a prospective client NOT to list their home for sale) until you're about 6 to 8 weeks out from moving into the home you're going to restore!  This strategy leaves you the option to sell your primary residence... a) when you're ready to. b) when you can capitalize on an expanding market. or c) if you find that you need proceeds from the sale of the home in order to continue restoration of your new property. Does holding off on listing your current home sound like a plan that you guys could work with, or would you be more comfortable wrapping up one property before you start on another?  Either option is OK with me.

Note the subtle underlying message that I believe shines a light on my commitment to my clients best interest before mine: a characteristic not typically seen within the real estate industry.  In this example, I actually advised my clients to postpone the sale of their primary residence.  I'm postponing my own income; actually foregoing guaranteed income, with faith that by best serving my clients, I'll earn more in the long run, and sleep better in the process.

Here are a few other questions that I might ask in order to answer the "simple" question, "Is this a good time to buy or sell a house?"

• Will you be replacing your home with another or are you simply selling off an asset?
• Are you looking to up-size or down-size?
• Are you leaving the area?  If so...where are you going?
• Is your home a rental property? If so, have you considered a 1031 tax deferred exchange?
• Do you have positive equity in your property?  If so...how much?
• If you owe more than the value of your home, have you endured a hardship that would qualify you for a short-sale or short-pay transaction?
• Are you going to sell no matter what, or will you only sell if you receive a certain price or certain net proceed/profit?
• If you need to receive a certain price level, are you prepared to put in the time, effort, and/or funds necessary to fetch the very highest price for your home?
• If you're looking to buy an "income property" or "Lease/Rental property," have you been a landlord already?  If not, do you qualify to hold both mortgages without the consideration of possible lease income?

After we have answers to the questions above, we'll need to collect market data sufficient to get a clear and accurate understanding about short term and long term local market trends.

Click on the image for an up-close look at market trends.  You can see that, in Yucaipa, the median home price for a single family home was the same in August of 2010 as it was in August of 2015, If I had a crystal ball I'd have bought in September of 2011 and sold in February of 2014!  Where do you think the market is going now? Will it continue down as it has in the short run, or will it turn back up following the longer term trend over the past 6 years?

A "good" time to sell is a direct function of these trends.  Local market trends are virtually never what you hear on your local news channel.  In fact, not long ago I saw the Northern California market show a 24% decrease in median home prices while another market only 16 miles away increased by nearly 1%.  Your national or local news can't possibly accurately report on each individual market's condition, but your local area Realtor can.

Although the video below has time sensitive market information, the spirit of the underlying question is addressed in a more practical way than relying solely on the numbers.

I hope you took something helpful away from this post.  If you have a question that you'd like to see answered on this blog or in a video, please drop me a line and let me know.  If you're curious...you can bet there are many more who are wondering the same thing!

Thanks in advance for remembering my name when the topic of Real Estate comes up in conversation.  If you're local , just remember Andy@LoisLauer.Com I'm always here to help.  

My business thrives by word of mouth.  If you appreciate the information provided on my blog, please share this post on your favorite social media sites, and with anyone you feel could use my service.

Until next time.

Andy Blasquez  Cell ~ 909.539.3292
BRE#01826135
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E-mail me on Andy.Blasquez@gmail.com