Answers by Lauren Perreault

If you trust your agent, then listen to them. I once met some heirs to their parents estate. They had tried with a different agent to sell it and the only offer they could get was $850,000 in a neighborhood of million dollar homes. I made them a list AND GOT FIRM BIDS from contractors, some of whom deferred part of the payment until escrow closed. The list added up to $45,000 and we were able to finish the repairs in about 3 weeks. When we put the home back on the market, it received multiple offers and sold for $1,015,000, a net gain of $120,000! Each of the three heirs was very pleased to get an extra $40,000. If cash is an issue, there are companies that will do all the work and get paid at the end of escrow. There are also ways to get a no-interest deal from someplace like Home Depot to do the improvements, then you pay it off at close of escrow. I will never recommend something I don't think will at least pay for itself in the final sales price AND will result in a faster, smoother sale because we often get multiple offers for these move-in ready homes.

To know as much as possible about any aspect of a home, you need to consult experts. Obviously hire a good home inspector and then bring in subject matter experts for any thing the inspector flags --things like electrical, plumbing, well water quality, structural integrity, etc. Even then you won't be able to get a perfect home, because no home is perfect, even brand new ones, and inspectors cannot see inside the walls. But having the specialist experts in to evaluate can help you avoid many issues. If mosquitos are your big concern, then obviously wooded lots in a hot humid climate near a relatively still body of water are to be avoided. But the easiest way to find out anything about the area -- bugs, traffic noise, train schedules, public transportation, etc. is to ask the neighbors (who are the experts in that location.) This has the added benefit of not moving in next door to someone who is rude to you!

I would speak to a good property manager and figure out how much it would rent for and then decide. You should definitely talk to your CPA about this because typically you have to stay in a home two years (or two of the last five years) to obtain the $250,000 capital gain exclusion which allows a married couple to shield up to $500,000 in capital gains. If you relocate before the two years because of an employment transfer, the IRS will pro-rate the two years, but if you keep it and rent it in order to try to have it appreciate enough to cover the costs to sell, then you need to be sure you will not pay taxes on any gain.

Ask yourself if you think the agent's marketing plan will attract enough buyers and if your home is one that is in demand. If so, then listen to your agent. The price and the market value are two separate things. Market value is determined by what a willing buyer will pay. In order to get people in to see your home, however, they have to be attracted both by the marketing and by the price. Bringing more views and more visits will ultimately result in more people interested, so it is generally a good idea to price a tick below what your agent thinks it will sell for. If they are way low, then you will get a flood of offers and the "rising tide" will lift your price up to possibly where you want to price or even higher. If, instead, you price at your desired price, then you may get no showings and no interest and will end up doing price reduction after price reduction because you lost your early momentum of being a fresh listing that had a compelling price. Don't chase the market, let it chase your home. The days of pricing high to allow negotiating room no longer work in a market driven so much by internet listings.