1. Price it right the first time
Nearly every buyer who will ever see your home online sees it in the first 10 days. A home priced 5% high gets skipped; when it's reduced three weeks later, buyers read the price history and assume something's wrong. Homes listed within 3% of Irena's valuation go pending in about 9 days; those 8%+ over sit 45+.
Think in price bands. Buyers search 'under $750k.' A home listed at $760,000 is invisible to them. Listing at the top of a band often produces competing offers that push past where an aspirational price would have landed.
2. Prep that pays — and prep that doesn't
Pays: interior paint, updated lighting, decluttering, a pre-listing inspection, professional photography, and landscaping cleanup. Returns 2–5× the cost.
Doesn't: a full kitchen remodel weeks before listing (60–70% recovery at best), pools, or elaborate landscaping. Irena walks through with a specific list and rough return on each item.
3. What Whatcom County buyers pay for
In order: a dry, newer roof; a heat pump or updated heat source; a flat, usable yard; a garage; a kitchen from this decade. A pre-listing inspection that addresses sewer, roof, and electrical up front removes the three most common reasons deals fall apart here.
4. Marketing that reaches the right buyers
Pro photos, video, and floor plan on every listing. Outreach to Irena's buyer list and Whatcom agents the day it goes live on NWMLS. Targeted reach to Seattle, Vancouver, and California relocation buyers. Launch on a Thursday, open house Saturday, offers Monday.
5. Negotiating more than price
Terms change what you actually net: appraisal-gap coverage, inspection scope, leaseback, closing date, and what stays with the house. Irena reviews every offer side by side and negotiates the whole package — not just the number on top.
6. What it costs to sell
Washington excise tax (graduated, roughly 1.1–1.28% at most Whatcom price points), title and escrow (~$2,000–3,000), commission (negotiable, discussed up front), and any negotiated repairs or credits. Irena's net sheet shows every line before you list.
7. Selling an inherited home or downsizing
Estate and trust sales have their own sequence — who can sign, probate timing, as-is disclosure, and clean-out. Irena coordinates estate-sale companies, haul-away, and remote signing so out-of-state families never have to fly in. Downsizers: sell-first, contingent, or bridge — Irena maps each path with real numbers.