The three factors to consider in selling your home are location, condition and price. . . and they are all related.

1. Location

Your home's location and setting will influence its value. A home inside a quiet subdivision sells for more than the identical home on a busy street. Remote areas typically sell for less than closed-in areas. Views, streams and trees usually enhance value. You obviously have no control over location.

2. Condition

New homes enjoy a marketing edge over resale homes because they are shiny and clean. Builders enhance their appeal by offering model homes (clean, bright, decorated in current colors and amenities) for buyers to examine.

Our goal is to make your home as close to a model home as possible while being sensitive to costs. You have nearly complete control over condition and you can increase value and decrease marketing time by being sure your property is in the best possible condition.

3. Pricing

If IBM stock is trading between 104 and 108, it does no good to insist on selling at 112. Likewise, your home must be priced within the appropriate range. You must actually 'sell' your property twice: first to a buyer and then to an appraiser. The buyer is more subjective and compares the amenities of your home to those of other homes in the same price range. The appraiser is more objective and compares age, size and cost-identifiable features in your home against other properties that have sold.

I use my experience and expertise to fine-tune the price by taking into consideration all of these variables.