A Tale of A Listing That Finally SOLD in Snowmass Village
I often work for homeowners in the Aspen real estate market as well as Snowmass market that have been unable to successfully sell their property with other brokers. I sent this particular seller a letter requesting to speak with her about her home in Snowmass Village which had been on and off the market for 3 years. We can call her Sue (respecting her privacy). Sue received a letter I sent to her via Fed Ex requesting to speak with her about her property. We talked on the phone about how things had gone with her previous 2 real estate brokers. She said that she felt they had done a fair job but that these brokers had a sense of giving up on finding a buyer for her property and maybe even had given up on the Aspen Snowmass real estate market in general.
Showings Are Necessary For A Sale
I spoke to Sue about how we needed to generate buyer traffic to her home in order to bring an offer. We discussed the recent sales activity which was next-to-none. We discussed my aggressive marketing plan and how and when it would be implemented during the listing period. She was thrilled that she had found an agent with a specific plan of action. The marketing plan was customized to Sue’s property, location and price point. Sue was thrilled that she now had an agent that was excited about marketing her property and one that believed her property would sell.
I spoke to Sue about how we needed to generate buyer traffic to her home in order to bring an offer. We discussed the recent sales activity which was next-to-none. We discussed my aggressive marketing plan and how and when it would be implemented during the listing period. She was thrilled that she had found an agent with a specific plan of action. The marketing plan was customized to Sue’s property, location and price point. Sue was thrilled that she now had an agent that was excited about marketing her property and one that believed her property would sell.
The Real Estate Process Is Personal
Sue and I got to be friends during the process. She had recently gone through a divorce and had a serious desire to sell this property so she could return to her home town and be with her family. We had several heart to heart discussions of the real estate market and her urgent desire to move on with her life. Sue and I were in constant communication about showing feedback, improvements she would (and would not) make in order for the property to sell more quickly. Through our combined efforts we finally received an offer!
An Offer is Only As Good As The Terms
The terms of the first offer were not great (to put it mildly). The buyer was asking Sue to wait 90 days for a closing, for Sue to personally finance part of the purchase price AND the offer was contingent upon the sale of a property owned by the buyer – that was not even listed yet. Sue was a bit shaken by the complexity of the offer. She really wanted to keep the buyer and get the property sold! I counseled Sue that we would should counter that the buyer would obtain their own financing allowing the seller to be cashed out at closing and for the buyer to remove the sale contingency. The buyer’s agent said the buyer would agree to get financing. She insisted that the buyer was extremely well qualified but refused to provide a pre-qualification letter. I suggested that Sue not accept the offer until we had a written pre-qualification from the buyer’s lender. Surprise, surprise! The buyer went to my favorite local lender and was turned down. Luckily this lender has other sources for financing and provided the buyer with an alternative smaller bank-lender who did pre-qualify the buyer.
Negotiation In The Aspen & Snowmass Market
Negotiating in the Aspen real estate market as well as Snowmass can be like walking through a mine field. Buyers, Sellers and brokers can be difficult and highly determined to achieve their goals. Something about this area brings successful and opinionated folks (could it be the altitude?). After convincing the buyer to obtain a pre-qualification letter we needed to convince them to remove the sale contingency of their other property. I provided a list of comparable listings and recent sales depicting the market and the excellent value the buyer was getting on this property. We continued to show the property during the negotiations just in case we couldn’t get the buyer and seller in agreement. I shared the showing activity with the buyer’s agent and encouraged her to communicate the possibility of loosing this property to another buyer. The next day we received a much better offer with no sale contingencies, a higher price and the buyer’s pre-qualification letter.
Closing Was Such A Relief
Sue was so relieved at the closing that she was in tears. Tears of joy that she could move on with her life and get back to being with her family in her home town. For me as a real estate broker there is no greater reward than helping a seller achieve their goals.
I’ve closed 37 transactions in the past 12 months and would love to hep you buy or sell real estate in Aspen or Snowmass. I can be reached via phone at (970) 925-7477 or via email You can search the MLS for real estate listings at www.SearchAspenRealEstate.com