Selling,
done properly.
Pricing is the marketing. Everything else is distribution. Here is the whole sequence, in the order it happens, so nothing about your sale is a surprise.
The core idea
A correctly priced home markets itself. An overpriced one markets its competition.
Buyers in Scottsdale look at 8 to 12 homes before they write. If yours is priced above the set they are comparing, it becomes the reference point that makes another house look like value. You pay for that with days on market, and days on market is the thing that eventually forces the price down anyway, just slower and with more inconvenience.
So we spend the effort at the front. Comps with the adjustments shown. 3 net sheets, at the market number, above it and below it. A 114 step launch plan you get a copy of before anything goes live. 60 to 90 days of preparation when there is time for it, and one person accountable from the first call through recording.
The sequence
Four moves,
in order.
Skipping one does not save time. It moves the cost to a worse place later in the deal.
Price with evidence
Live comparable sales adjusted to your home, plus active and pending inventory to see what buyers are choosing between today. Then 3 seller net sheets so the pricing decision is made on proceeds and probable timeline rather than on hope.
Prepare what pays
A room by room walk with the comps in hand, separating the work that returns money from the work that only spends it. Trades, staging, and photography scheduled in the right sequence and for the right light.
Launch everywhere at once
Complete MLS entry, portal syndication, paid social to the buyer profile the data points at, brokerage and partner distribution, and direct agent outreach. A listing gets one first week of attention. We spend all of it deliberately.
Negotiate, then coordinate
Offers compared on net proceeds and likelihood of closing rather than headline price. Inspection response strategy, appraisal support with the comp package, and a transaction coordinator tracking every AAR contract deadline through recording.
The pricing conversation
Three numbers,
not one opinion.
The hardest conversation in this business is telling someone their house is not worth what they were told. It goes better when it is not a conversation at all, just 3 columns on a page.
We model an asking price above the market number, at it, and below it. Each column shows the likely days on market, the probability of an appraisal problem, the expected concessions, and the proceeds that reach your account. You read it, you pick, and you own the decision because you can see the tradeoff.
People are not stubborn about price. They are stubborn about being told what to do without being shown why.
Fair questions
Selling, answered.
How do you decide what my home should list for?
Closed comparable sales in your subdivision from roughly the last 90 to 180 days, adjusted line by line for square footage, lot, view, condition, and age. Then a check against what is currently active and under contract, because those tell you what buyers are choosing between right now. You see every adjustment.
What does the 114 step marketing plan actually include?
Preparation and photography, complete and accurate MLS entry, syndication to the major portals, a paid social campaign aimed at the buyer profile the comps point to, brokerage and partner network distribution, direct outreach to agents with matching buyers, showing feedback collection, and a scheduled review of pricing and traffic. It is a checklist, and you get a copy.
Why 3 net sheets instead of one?
Because the real question is never the asking price, it is what reaches your account and how long it takes. Modeling at, above, and below the market number shows you the tradeoff between price and time honestly, and it turns a debate about opinions into a comparison of outcomes.
What should I fix before listing, and what should I leave alone?
The comparable sales answer that. If updated kitchens in your subdivision are not commanding a premium over original ones, a remodel is a gift to the next owner. Paint, lighting, landscape, decluttering, and the 2 or 3 rooms buyers photograph almost always return more than they cost. We go room by room before you spend anything.
How long before listing should we start?
60 to 90 days is ideal. That is enough time to do preparation in the right order, schedule photography for good light, and launch on a day of the week that matters. If you need to be on the market sooner, we compress it, but you should know what the compression costs.
What is your commission?
Commissions are not set by law and are fully negotiable. Before you sign a listing agreement, we go through a net sheet together so you know the total cost of sale and the number you actually take home.
What happens if the appraisal comes in low?
I send the appraiser the comparable sales package and the adjustments up front so it is less likely to happen. If it does, you have 4 options: renegotiate, have the buyer cover the gap, request a rebuttal with better comps, or terminate under the contract. We look at all 4 against your net rather than reacting.