Don't let the slow market get you down.  Rev up your real estate potential with these helpful pointers.

Use the secrets of staging experts, or hire one. Staging can be as easy as a fresh coat of paint, new cabinet hardware and strategically-placed lighting. Think of it as a creative, inexpensive facelift for your home.

Find out what's wrong with the house and get it fixed. Don't wait until that serious buyer finds faulty wiring or a termite problem and then backs out of the deal.  Get an inspection before hitting the market.

Come up with a comprehensive home-selling strategy. Don't put an ad on Craigslist, stick a sign in the ground and call it a day. Whether you're going FSBO or using an agent, selling your home in a buyer's market requires a well thought-out plan with accurate pricing, targeted improvements and focused marketing and exposure.

Hire an aggressive, well-connected real estate agent. Find an experienced agent with a proven track record. In this market, name recognition is important, so find the go-to person for buyers and their agents in your community.

Help a buyer buy it. Offer incentives that put money in the buyer's pocket, such as buying down the interest rate, absorbing more of the closing costs or offering seller financing.

Consider renting or offering a lease option. Minimize the impact of two mortgages by renting your house out until you find a buyer. Or offer a lease option to a motivated buyer who doesn't have enough cash to buy a home outright.

At Atlanta Housing Source, we want to be your source for real estate. We can help you understand if now is the right time to sell or if you should wait until the market improves.  Whether you live in Cobb, Gwinnett, North Fulton, or Cobb, we can provide you with a reasonable estimate of value from our office. Of course without actually seeing your home, we will only be able to give you an estimated range.

Should you prefer a more accurate evaluation, we can set up an appointment for one of our specialist to visit with you and share with you suggestions about putting your home on the market and provide you with a Competitive Market Evaluation.

YES! I want to know what my home is worth!

Here are some of the characteristics sellers say they want in a real estate agent:

• Experience. Let new agents learn the business on somebody else's dime.
• Education. Ask about degrees and certifications.
• Honesty. Trust your intuition. Your agent should speak from the heart.
• Networking. This is a people business. Some homes sell because agents have contacted other agents.
• Negotiation skills. You want an aggressive negotiator, not somebody out to make a quick sale at your expense.
• Good communicator. Sellers say communication and availability are key.

Finally, ask for a personal guarantee. If the agent won't guarantee performance and release you from a listing upon request, don't hire that agent.

At Atlanta Housing Source, we want to be your source for real estate. If you are considering selling your home in Gwinnett, Cobb, North Fulton, or Forsyth, we want to speak with you to see if we are the people to help.

If you would like a FREE AUDIO on how to sell you home with tips and strategies that we recommend you do prior to putting your house on the market - just e-mail us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with FREE Audio in the subject line and we will send you the link to listen to our recommendations.

Also, if you would like for a personal home evaluation, we will be happy to meet with you in person to discuss your particular home. 

Beyond the expensive car or fancy clothing, a good listing agent lives and dies by marketing. Marketing sells homes. Ask to review a complete copy of the agent's marketing plan. Precisely, what is the agent going to do to sell your home?

When you need to sell your home, you need a real estate agent who can act quickly to the ever changing marketplace. If you are interviewing agents, here is the bare-bones minimum you should expect:

• Professional signage, including agent's cell phone number.
• Lockbox. 
• Daily electronic monitoring of lockbox access.
• Follow-up reports on buyer showings / feedback to the seller.
• Broker previews.
• Incentives for broker / office previews.
• Staging advice.
• On-line advertising with a major newspaper site.
• MLS exposure with 8 to 12 professional photographs.
• Virtual tour.
• Distribution to major Web sites.
• 24 Hour Informational Voice Mail.
• Financing flyers for buyers.
• Minimum of 1 open houses, providing its location is a candidate.
• Feedback to sellers on buyer calls and home viewings.
• Updated CMAs after 30 days.
• E-mail feeds of new listings that compete.
• Updates on neighborhood facts, trends and recent sales.

Remember, no single tactic sells homes. It's a combination of all those methods that sell homes.