Dear Ms. Seller: If You Can’t Use It, Is It a Feature?

Toby was recently negotiating a contract for a young couple that fell through. One of the key reasons was because the buyer and seller were about $10,000 apart on the value of the property.

Of course, in this market it isn’t uncommon for the buyers and sellers to be this far apart. But in this case Toby felt like the American public during the Bill Clinton impeachment trials — but rather than the definition of sex, this was about features.

From the American Heritage Dictionary:

fea·ture (fē’chər)
n.

Any of the distinct parts of the face, as the eyes, nose, or mouth.
The overall appearance of the face or its parts. Often used in the plural.
A prominent or distinctive aspect, quality, or characteristic: a feature of one’s personality; a feature of the landscape.

No mention of whether they need to be “working” to be labeled as a “feature”. They simply need to be “distinctive” from other homes in the area. So a FINISHABLE third floor would be a feature, but it wouldn’t be as valuable as a FINISHED third floor. So the completeness of the feature would impact the amount that should be added to the price.

In this negotiation the other agent was focusing on two aspects:

• Finishable third floor
• Two-car garage

Based on these two, the finishable third floor would be the “tougher” of the two to place a dollar figure on. But, of course, not in this negotiation.

According to the Free Dictionary by Farlex:

ga·rage  (g-räzh, -räj)

n.
1. A building or indoor space in which to park or keep a motor vehicl

So does it matter that the door don’t open?

Based on this definition, yes. So, that “lovely” two-car garage becomes a very-large storage shed if the garage doors cannot be opened.

What is the moral of this story? When you prepare your house for sell — take stock of its unique features. Then:

1. Make sure they are unique;
2. Make sure they are something people care about;
3. Make sure they are in good working order; and
4. Make them the “focus” of your advertising and promotion.

If this is something that people are paying extra for in other parts of town TELL ME that you have it — don’t leave it up to me to find it.

Now good luck selling your home!

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