selling a home and give you advice about how to get the most money possible from your home sale in the shortest amount of time, despite being at risk of foreclosure. For most Americans, buying a home is likely to be the single biggest investment we will ever make. The process has its own special language, with words such as “escrow” and “amortization” that we don’t use every day. Most of us don’t buy homes very often, so we never get especially comfortable or familiar with that process. Add to that the emotional investment we make in a new home. We see it as the embodiment of our hopes and dreams — our “castle,” our greatest financial achievement. Emotions can overtake good judgment. As a seller, you might think, “Surely, my home, where I invested so much money and sweat equity and where I raised my children, is worth more than ‘you people’ [appraisers, prospects, and buyer’s agents] think it is. You aren’t considering that the neighborhood was named ‘Most Livable’ in the local paper!” (But five years ago, and the old neighborhood has since changed.) Emotions almost always lead to problems in a sales price negotiation. Further, real estate transactions involve multiple decision points and often substantial investment of the homeowner’s time, energy, and money. As a seller, you want to find that home shopper who simply can’t resist buying your house at the highest price. To do that, you must provide potential buyers a striking home sales presentation that outshines other homes on the market. This requires creating a fantastic first impression, giving buyers an immediate feeling that they’re traveling up the front walkway of “their” new home for the first time, and not visiting someone else’s. Selling a house is about falling in love at first sight, from the curb, in those initial (and fleeting) seconds. As I said before, here’s the big news — everybody doesn’t get the price they could when selling their home. For example, consider
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