1. Estimated sales price
   We will furnish you with an estimate of the PRICE you can expect from the sale of your property.
2. Title search
   We will check your title in the property register for you to make sure there is clear title and no liens nor encumbrances against the property.
3. Home enhancement
   We will develop a plan to enhance your property's ability to attract buyers, as described in the GoDutch Realty Home Enhancement Guide.
4. GoDutch action team
   We will present your property to the GoDutch sales team. I will share with you the team's review and recommendations to help you realize the best price obtainable for your property.
5. American European Real Estate Network action team
   We will present your property to the AE Costa Rica sales team. We will share with you the team's review and recommendations to help you realize the best price obtainable for your property
6. Promotion to other brokers
   We will promote your property to other reputable, professional brokers and sales associates in the area.
7. GoDutch realty sign
   We will place a GoDutch Realty FOR SALE sign on your property, to help generate calls to our office from prospective buyers if wanted.
8. Advertising
   We will review with you our advertising program designed to generate buyer prospects for your property.
9. Offers
   We will present you any offers made by potential buyers. You will keep us informed of any changes in the property and keep the information current.
10. Marketing activity report
    We will provide you with a Marketing Activity Report on a regular basis to keep you informed of the buyer activity, and the actions we have taken to market your property.
11. Qualifying buyers
    We will try to qualify all buyers before we show your property, as much as is possible in Costa Rica.
12. Purchase offers
    We will review all purchase offers as they are presented, and we will negotiate on your behalf to reach a purchase agreement with terms that are favorable and protective for you.
13. Closing the sale
    We will monitor and inform you of the progress of the transaction, including the satisfaction of all contingencies and conditions during the entire transaction.

Showing Your House

Important things to remember when selling your house

Before your agent shows the house, do the following:

• Our experience us shows that creating an inviting atmosphere inside your home can increase its appeal and desirability. View your home with a critical eye. View it as if you were the buyer. Clean, polish, paint, complete minor repairs, and add all the special touches. Prepare your home as if you were entertaining your finest guests. Let it show its "Holiday Best!" Make it S*P*A*R*K*L*E*!
• Close the garage door.
• Park the kids and the pets with a neighbor.
• Put away the kids' toys.
• Turn on all the lights and open all the curtains. Exception: leave the curtains drawn if the window looks out on an unattractive wall.
• Weather permitting, open some of the windows. Exception: if there is a lot of traffic or other industrial noise, leave the windows closed
• If there is a smoker in the house, remove all ashtrays and other evidence of tobacco
• Use an air freshener if the house does not already smell fresh.

"Little things" mean a lot when selling

You can help recoup the value of most improvements when you sell your home. Please concentrate on two rooms that can help sell a house:

The Kitchen and The Bathrooms

• Clear counters, drawers and cabinets of unnecessary items.
• Place out your best towels as if company were coming.
• Clean light fixtures and replace bulbs if needed.
• Replace faucets if chrome or brass are discolored.
• Clean soap dishes, mirrors, faucets and appliances (inside and out).
• Re-grout tile in shower and tubs if needed.
• Scrub toilets, and mildew in shower tiles.
• Store cleaning supplies and hang freshly washed towels.
• Be conscious of odors caused by dampness, hampers, garbage and various foods.

Cabinets and Counters

• Store infrequently used counter-top items to allow a spacious look in the kitchen and bathroom.
• Take magnets, and drawings off the cabinets and refrigerator.
• Polish wood and countertops.
• Put away those extra gadgets, and canisters.
• Keep drawers and cabinets tidy and organized.

Interior Enhancements

• Paint the front entrance and put a couple of flowering plants by the door.
• If rooms are even the slightest bit cluttered, remove some of the furniture.
• No matter what you have in your closets, take at least half of it out.
• Remove at least half of what you have sitting on your kitchen counters.
• Clean the house thoroughly and keep the windows clean. Pay special attention to the kitchen & bathrooms.
• Make the beds and keep all clothes out of sight.
• Tighten any loose knobs or faucets.
• Make sure all of the lights and the doorbell are working.
• Turn off all blaring stereos and TV sets while the house is being shown. Soft music is more desirable. Set the mood with music prior to leaving for a showing of your house.
• Put new washers in all dripping faucets.
• Throw away the torn shower curtain and put up a new one.
• Water all dying plants or get rid of them.
• Adjust all doors, including closets, and windows so they can be opened and closed easily.

Exterior Enhancements

• Rake leaves, mow lawn, and keep the edges neat. Lawns and landscaped areas should be weeded regularly. Trees and shrubs should be pruned and trimmed.
• Remove old lawn mowers, tractors, disabled autos, broken lawn ornaments, topless tables, armless lawn furniture, and seat-less chairs. These are reasons for a buyer to make a U-turn.
• Hoses should be coiled or placed inconspicuously when not in use. Other garden equipment should be stored in some type of shelter when not in use.
• A yard should be free from unnecessary clutter. A place should be provided for children's toys and equipment. All animal litter should be removed daily.
• Ensure that garage doors open and close freely. House and garage doors should be free of finger marks. Wood surfaces should be kept painted, oiled or stained.
• Porches, steps, veranda, balconies, patios, and other extensions of the home must be uncluttered, clean, and in good repair.
• Shades and awnings that are in good repair with fresh colors will improve the exterior appearance of the house.
• Keep garbage cans deodorized and out of sight or placed inconspicuously.
• Walkways and entrances should be well maintained and free from excess water, mud or leaves. Put some crushed rock on walkways and driveways that turn muddy in the rain and fill in any potholes.
• Keep gates, fences, walls, and outer buildings repaired and painted.
• If you are neither prepared to, nor want to, spend hundreds of dollars for exterior painting, be prepared to make an immediate and substantial price reduction. Faded or peeling paint rarely escapes the buyer’s attention.
• If the roof leaks, FIX IT!
• Smile! You may have chuckled or frowned or worse when reading this list. Trivial as some of the items may seem, these "little things that mean a lot" can make the difference between turning on or off the buyer you are looking for.

Top 10 mistakes home sellers make

1. Overpricing your home is the surest way to have your home sit and linger on the market.
2. To be a seller you have to look at your home like a buyer.
3. Not preparing your home for sale—If you want top dollar for your house, it has to be neat and clean. Get rid of the clutter, paint where needed and repair those things that need to be fixed.
4. Avoid having too many people present during inspections. The potential buyer will feel like an intruder and will hurry through the house. Do not allow children to tag along on the visitors tour. When possible, leave the agent alone to show your property. Try to remain in an area not being shown by the broker, if you are not able to leave for the showing.
5. Leave the showing up to the broker. It is our business to sell. The broker knows the buyer's requirements and can best emphasize the features of your home. You will be called if needed.
6. Don't discuss anything concerning the sale with customers. Let the realtor discuss price, terms, possession, and other factors with the customers. We are eminently qualified to bring negotiations to a favorable conclusion.
7. Never apologize for appearance. It only accents or distracts.
8. Never try to sell furniture to a customer before the deal is complete.
9. Don't limit access to your house, be flexible, try and give your agent enough flexibility to make appointments for showings that meets the needs of their buyers. If people can't see your home when they want to, they'll never make an offer.
10. Keep your dogs out of the way (One type of prospect is annoyed - the other has their attention diverted). Also keep them from barking, other dogs in the neighborhood will start barking too, most buyers will think of sleepless nights to come.

As a seller, you are concerned with finding a realtor who will promote your property using a complete marketing program. Your GoDutch realtor will promote your property in the following ways: Traditional print media, Internet pages, Corporate relocation prospects, and through Costa Rica's only realtor referral network. While we encourage our clients to list with other reputable realtors, you should be certain that they will offer you the same level of service. Get the details of our marketing and promotion package below, and then read some useful insider tips for selling and showing your home.

Every broker now offers Internet exposure for his or her properties. As a seller, what is important to you is not that the broker has a Web site, but how aggressively the site is promoted. Off-line advertising drives online traffic and this means more exposure for your property. At GoDutch Realty offer you two Web sites:

www.godutchrealty.com

www.aecostarica.com

Because we promote our Web sites aggressively, we attract more than 7,000 visitors a month to those sites, which is more than any Costa Rica Real Estate Web site does.

We offer two different web sites as we market those web sites in a different manner. The GoDutch web site is marketed exclusively to the retirement and baby boomer market while the AECostaRica web site is marketed toward real estate in Costa Rica in general.

Most brokers don’t belong to some form of national broker-to-broker network for referring relocating families to each other. However, GoDutch Realty belongs to the American European Referral Network, the only formal real estate referral network in the country. In addition, GoDutch Realty has an informal network of reputable realtors in Costa Rica that don’t belong to the American-European network. Most real estate companies talk about relocation customers; GoDutch Realty has relocation customers!

The Internet is changing the way people are getting their information but newspapers are still a resource for home sale opportunities. Being in the forefront for positioning in our primary newspaper, the Tico Times, and our primary magazine, The Real Estate Guide, means GoDutch Realty ads are the first ones to be seen. Displayed in a user-friendly format, the ads both attract the prospective buyers as well as providing them with easy to read, information about available properties in Costa Rica.

Finding buyers is only part of the process. Enticing the buyer with added benefits of buying a GoDutch Realty property adds to the appeal. The following benefits are available to the seller and buyer clients of GoDutch Realty:

First Connect: One contact takes care of all the tedious tasks of getting set up in a new home or moving out of a home.

Residential Title: GoDutch Realty’s closing services work in conjunction with the clients and the mortgage bank or closing attorney to provide a convenient, quality and informative closing experience.

Home inspection: GoDutch Realty’s agents all recommend getting a home inspection done. In Costa Rica you purchase a property as is, but you can make your purchase subject to for example roof, drainage and septic tank damage. A home inspection will at least supply you with a list of small damages to the property to be able to get those repaired before you move in. GoDutch Realty strongly recommends Jere McKinney of Toad Heaven http://www.toadheaven.com/

Most realtors in Costa Rica will NOT recommend using a home inspector as it is not customary here. But we prefer to cover any unnecessary surprises and have you as a happy buyer.

GoDutch Realty – Specialists in Costa Rica Real Estate, Homes, Condos, Land for Sale, Commercial Real Estate, Rentals, Costa Rican Properties, Costa Rica Investment, Living in Costa Rica, and Costa Rica Retirement.