I want to get your ideas on a marketing strategy I am considering for a property that I personally own. I sold real estate for 14 years, and am waiting for my license to be currently approved. So I know a little, but not everything.

Subject property:
This is a small trailer on an in-town lot in a small rural community. We purchased it as the market was falling, so we didn't buy at the top, but it has lost about 25% since we bought.We paid cash, and have been able to save 60% of the money we spent on it through savings and rental income. We lived in the home for several years and rented it out when we relocated to another state for work. Our intention was always to return to that community, but our plans have now changed so we have decided to sell it and buy a larger place were we currently live. This is only important because we really can't loose on this. If we are lucky enough to sell it at 75% of our purchase price we still have realized an 8% annual return on the investment, which is better than most of our other investments.

The situation:
The current tenant will be moving out at the end of the month, we will be listing the home, 10 to 15% below the other listings in the area (so I think we will be priced right). The property is a trailer on a owned lot (no permanent foundation), so FHA is probably out as well as some of the conventional programs. The rumor in town is that we are losing the house to foreclosure, This is only important because its a very small town and everybody follows everybody's business.

Strategy:
I want to capitalize on the distressed sale thing, but its not really a distressed sale. I have no mortgage and the taxes are paid, carrying cost run me about $75/ mo.. This is a great property for an investor, rental income should return 12-14% on our list price. and there are two investors in town that might consider it if they believe they can steal it.

I am considering listing it now a little above our target list (but still 5-10% below market), but not allowing showings until the tenant moves, to see if I can stir those investors into action. When the tenant moves and I can show it I will drop the price 5% if I don't have showings scheduled.

My question:
by listing it 2 weeks early do I risk the listing going stale before it is available to show, and will a 5% price reduction two weeks after listing freshen it back up.

I don't care if I look like a desperate seller, I can sell it for half of the current market and still end up OK. Plus the lower the sale price the high my capital gains loss. if I move it before the end of the year I get to use that sooner.

I will be listing it with a local Realtor that I have worked with several times and trust. Both he and I are on the fence about listing it now verses listing when it can be shown.

Thanks in advance for your help, sorry this post was so long.

Do you have a source of PMI in Montana ?

What year is that puppy? Hopefully younger than 1976.

Sales of Mobiles of all ages have just about died here because there's no longer an PMI?

You may have to consider Owner Financing, if you're in a position to support it; as few people interested in Mobiles have a conventional 20%.

Around here, most older mobiles are sold for cash and Buyers take advantage of the pre-existing lot and site improvements and then scrap the mobile and arrange to put up a stick built house.

Vermont, Thanks for the reply. The property is actually in Wyoming and I will have to check on on PMI sources.

Its a 2001 or 2002 have to look at the papers to know for sure, but new enough that age shouldn't be as big a problem as the fact that its a trailer.

I am hoping to interest cash buyers (investors), I think if we have to owner finance it we would just keep it as a rental. The list price will be under $50k and similar units rent between $650 and $750.

you have some good sales strategies, but I think what you're planning may be overkill. it sounds as though this is in a small, slow market. psychological games probably won't do any good in a rural community. just put it on the market. If the property has intrinsic value and buyer demand exists, you will get offers.

If its not on a permanent foundation, Id be surprised if tnere is any finacing available. Your agent should be researching this.

Shana,

I do tend to over think things, so you are probably right. My plan is to go with whatever my agent says and not worry about it.

Thanks everybody for are the help, I will update you after I talk to my agent.

*** UPDATE ***

The home is now listed! went with $49,500 list price, the closest comp is 55k. also bumped the payout up to 4% instead of the local tradition of 3%. Driving down today to pick up keys and make sure its good to go. Still looking for an investor to buy it, but we will consider owner financing. (with a huge down-payment, 5 yr term (not balloon) at 8% there is still positive cash flow).

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/918-Lookout-Dr_Glenrock_WY_82637_M85665-96578?source=web

If the link doesn't work its because I am to knew to the forum, the home is in Glenrock, WY. and does show on Realtor (dot) com if they have their search issues corrected.

So is that a rented lot, in a MobileHome Park, or on its own land? If rented, what's the lot rent?

Looks like it's set up for a garage; but has only a garden shed? Would a Garage be permitted?

Doesn't look like Wyoming . . . . more like Iraq or Timbuktu. Can you put in a few ornamental shrubs or something? Just to make it look less stark?

If the interior is as well kept as the outside, at $49,500, it looks like you'll unload it fairly fast; even with the financing difficulties. Offering some form of Owner Financing was a good idea; just to get them thinking. 1996 is 15 years old . . . . doesn't look it!

Vermont,

The lot is owned, included in the list price. The rent mentioned is what we had it rented for previously. The garden shed is 12x20 on a concrete slab, so it is essentially a one car with the door on the wrong side. The city has said that I could put up a two car, but that would pretty much take up the whole lot. Less than half of the homes in the area have garages (I can't figure out why). The gravel drive is supposed to be an RV pad, I have used it for the horse trailer before, but its tough enough to get in and out of that I didn't use it regularly.

Siding and roof are less than 5 years old so that's why it looks newer. Its about 20 miles outside of Casper, so its pretty much high desert. Pretty in its own way, but not at all like Vermont. If I still have it in the spring I will put some potted shrubs in front, the neighbors will take care of them for me if I give them the shrubs. Until spring they will get covered in tumble weeds, which get stuck in everything (30 mile an hour evening winds).

Thanks for the input.

That's what I had thought; but the website you provided says that a lot size isn't available . . . . which causes that question to come to mind.

Conversely, that same site gives a very precise 810 SF GLA.

And I see that they show it as a 1996; not a 2001 0r 2002 . . . . still looks like new.

I was just got back from a quick trip down to make sure the trailer is cleaned up and shows well...

I measured the lot and had it added to the listing, but my agent thinks the internet sites may or may not pick it up, so we are adding a reference to the lot in the agent remarks so that there is no confusion.

I was pretty sure it was newer than it is, but the title says 96 so I must have been wrong. We had not had any interest in the first couple of days so before I left we reduced it to $47,500.

I have my fingers crossed, I am priced $6,500 under the nearest similar property (over 10%). and paying a commission that is higher than the next 5 listings. I also stopped around town and visited the few people that I know invest in this type of thing, and let them know to look for it. My listing agent has called "both" of the agents in town to let them know, and he has been promoting it to investors in Casper. I don't think we have missed anything, so if it the market allows it should sell.

:D Update:

We have had 4 offers on this home, about one a week for a month, three started at a low price and wanted us to carry 95-100% of the financing. With each of the three, we we were flexible enough to come to mutually acceptable terms only to find that the buyers didn't have the means to make the payments.

Finally we received a solid offer from an investor, Cash, no contingency s at a reasonable starting price (much higher than the other three started at). We accepted without making a counter. Yes we would have liked a little more, but it was refreshing enough to work with someone who bothered to do a little homework and presented a solid offer that a couple thousand more wasn't even worth asking for.

We will close in a couple weeks! Thanks to all for your input, your advice helped me to put together a good marketing strategy and sell a hard to sell home.

Dodger

The purpose of real estate company's marketing plan is to gain an economic balance between creating more value for clients -vs- increasing company profits. To achieve this, Marketing-Plan-Strategies has adopted a marketing philosophy or what Marketing-Plan-Strategies termed as “marketing principles