3 Tips for a Hard-to-Sell House

Here are three last-ditch suggestions from SmartMoney magazine to move a house when the usual sales techniques haven’t worked.

• Auction it off. The number of residential auction sales is up 8 percent in 2005. It’s faster, although if you don’t get enough bidders, the price can be less than you might have hoped. Setting a starting bid will make sure you don’t get stuck with a ridiculously low price. The National Auction Group will handle the details. It works with local real estate professionals.
  
  
• Spread the word in cyberspace. From well-known sites like Craigslist and eBay to newcomers like HomeToursOnline.net and ChoiceofHomes.com. Practitioners can handle the details for their customers.
  
  
• Throw in a bonus. Encouraging the seller to pay for all allowable closing costs is a tried-and-true approach. But sweetening the pot with things like a car or a vacation to someplace glamorous also can appeal to some buyers.
  
  Source: SmartMoney, Jim Rendon (02/10/06)