How to Sell One's Home in a Recession

Generally speaking, a recession is not the best time to sell your home. In general, it is best to sell your home when the housing market is high and strong to get the best price. However, if you need to sell your home when the economy is in a recession, the advantage is that there are fewer houses on the market, thus less competition for available buyers.

Instructions

1. Choose the right realtor or broker to sell your home. A recession is not a good time to try to sell your home on your own. Watch the papers to monitor which agents seem to be listing and selling homes despite the tough economy. Contact a few of them to request they make a "listing presentation." Ask them what they feel the value of your home is and how they intend to market your property.

2. Familiarize yourself with the current market in your area. Your agent should be able to tell you how much houses in your area are currently selling for, as well as any deals that have been made by the seller to get the house sold. For example, if your neighbor's house sold for $200,000 but he had to give the buyer back 5 percent for necessary repairs, the house really sold for $190,000.

3. Remain patient. Do not be too quick to drop the price of your home, or pull it off the market, if it doesn't sell right away. During a recession, it might take a little time for your house to sell. You may eventually decide to take it off the market, or lower your asking price, but give it a few months to see which way the market is going before making any changes.

4. Keep your listing current. If you do any improvements or repairs to the property while it is on the market, notify your agent and have her include that information in your listing. Also, if the season has changed since the agent took pictures for your listing, ask her to come back and take new pictures. An off-season picture tells potential buyers that your home has been on the market for awhile.

5. Sweeten the deal. Sometimes buyers need to get creative to sell their home during a recession. Consider offering to pay a portion of closing costs for your buyer, cover their moving expenses, or pay one month's mortgage for them.