In Need of Some Serious Advice!

[DD]

Okay, here's my situation:

I am the proud owner of a 1990 14x70 Patriot, located in a very nice park in southern Michigan. I bought it in 1997 for $16,300, and in 4 years, have reduced the note all the way to $14,500 (whoppee). Last October, I decided to put it on the market, and signed with the broker I bought it through. In the 9 months I had the house listed with this broker, they brought one prospective buyer through the house. Two more people just happened to knock on my front door because they saw the "for sale" sign in the window, and a friend of a friend inquired, but backed away because she thought the lot rent was too high. I am now signed with my second broker, and two months into my contract, have yet to receive a call from them asking to show the house.

Now, I'm not panicking yet, but it does concern me that we're in the middle of the buying season, and nobody is seeing the inside of my home. I have some plans for the future which do not involve my current residence, and I really can't afford to put life on hold for another 2 or 3 years while nobody even looks at my home. I understand that mobile homes do not sell quickly, but the way I see it, it won't sell at all if nobody even sees it. To add to the problem, my mortgage is through Associates Housing Finance, which doesn't even finance mobile homes any more (so I can forget about the idea of the buyer assuming the mortgage).

So I have some questions for anyone who can offer me some informed advice. Should I try to sell this house without a broker, and do the advertising and marketing on my own? Do I start plastering the local papers and trade rags with ads for my house? Do I have an open house to at least try to get people through the house? Currently, I am relying on my broker to handle all of this for me, but I'm not convinced they are doing so. Would I do better going about it on my own?

October will be here soon, and with that, I must face the fact that my chances of selling this house during the winter will drop substantially. If I go through the summer without anyone seeing the house (my hope is at least 2-3 people per month), I will feel as if I have wasted my time hoping that a broker will handle the agressive marketing of my home for me. Opinions?

[Alan]

There are both good and not-so-good brokers. If you want to get your home sold quickly, contact Nancy Jenkins at 734-586-1200. She is the most professional sales person in S.E. Michigan. She will work hard and find a buyer for you.

[DD]

Thanks for the tip. My home is in the Lansing area, but I'll look into your suggestion.

[DD]

Just called Nancy. She doesn't deal in this area of the state.

Oh well...any other input?

[DD]

I guess what I'm asking is, am I wasting my time on brokers, and could I do a better job trying to sell this house myself? It doesn't really bother me that it's not selling quickly. What DOES bother me is the fact that I'm not seeing any evidence that someone's TRYING to sell it. I would even settle for a call from the broker every 30 days or so, saying "just want to update you on what's happening", but I have to call them to see what's going on, and it's always the same "well, ya never know, ya never know".

For instance, here's what I would do if I were handling this myself:

- Place ads in all of the local community and trade papers, and go on an aggressive advertising spree (yeah, it's costly, but at least I'll know I'm doing something, and I can see it in print).

- Schedule at least 2 Sunday afternoon open houses per month, and advertise them heavily as well.

- Make arrangements with a finance company (such as Conseco or Triad) to whom I could refer prospects to apply for financing, and to handle all of the paperwork when the house sells.

Here's the way I'm beginning to look at it: It's no secret that the market is down right now, and as long as interest rates continue to fall and more people buy stick-built homes, the mobile home market will stay down. There are 25 other homes for sale in my park today, and that tells me that mobile home brokers have a lot of properties to worry about selling, so I'm thinking I need someone (namely, me) who is going to focus their attention on selling my particular property. To me, it's a home. It's been my home for the past 4 years, and I know that it will make a good home for the next person or family who occupies it. I'm afraid that, to the broker, it may be just another of hundreds of single-wides they have to worry about unloading. Whatever I decide, I feel I need to make my mind up in a short time if I want to minimize the chance of owning the house until at least the spring of 2002.

[KMV]

Hey, DD - don't laugh at this suggestion.

Buy a statue of St. Joseph and bury it on the lot or just put it somewhere in your home. Ask for his intercession in selling your home. St. Joseph is the patron saint of families, working people and home-owners. Remember - he had to support a family himself ! He's helped me countless times. Saints intercede for us when we ask their assistance. We aren't really praying TO them, we're asking them to pray FOR us.

Try it - it's going to work.

Good luck in your new home-

KMV

[DD]

Funny you should mention that KMV.

Several members of my family had made that suggestion to me (although they specified that I needed to bury the statue upside down...I don't quite know the significance of that), so this past weekend, I bought a St. Joseph statue at a Catholic shrine where I was attending mass, buried it in the ground (upside down as suggested), and said a prayer. Some may think it's a bit unconventional, but you know, it certainly can't hurt!

[Dan O'Flaherty]

If the broker is not doing the job, get someone else.
You could keep a sign in your home and put some advertising in a local paper. The big problem will be that many of thoes who want to buy, can't.
The local broker you are using is not doing the job. check with local lenders and see which ones might finance a buyer for your home, if the applicant can be financed.
Get the cards of the financers and have them ready for the people who want to buy your home.
It's work ... sorry

dan

[DD]

Don't be sorry - this is exactly the information I need! I probably should have gone this route months ago. Perhaps now I can finally get things moving!

I don't know why the brokers I've contracted haven't worked it. My only guess is that they have so much volume to move, they just never get to me. I even contacted a local realtor who deals in mobile homes, but they've yet to return my call. I guess I'm just souring on the whole idea of brokers in general, and I don't want to waste any more time. Someone else told me that nobody will work as hard as I will to sell my home, and I know they're right.

[Jon]

Dan is right. Either get another broker, do it yourself, or both. But if you take an active role in selling the home, be prepared for phone calls at odd hours and the odd visitor--especially if you advertise your telephone number and make appointments yourself. I don't mean to frighten you. However, you should know in advance how you will handle potentially unpleasant and/or uncomfortable situations.
Good luck!