The US housing market is in dire straights, no one could argue with that. House prices are down, house sales are down and developers are cutting prices on new developments left, right and center. But where does that leave the homeowner who needs to sell, whether from financial difficulties or some other reason?
Despite some construction firms’ attempt to halt the slide with massive price reductions, (several Vegas builders are taking as much as 20% off the cost of a new home,) the US housing market continued it’s slump, with used home sales reaching a 10 year low.
I’ve known a lot of people who have lost money when they sold their homes. In fact, I’m one of those people, and it’s happened to me more than once.
There are a number of factors can cause a financial loss when you sell your house, including the need to sell at the wrong time due to divorce or an impending foreclosure, or a downturn in the local real estate market. However, it’s also common to lose money simply by making too many expensive changes to the house before putting it on the market. This is how I lost money on real estate, before I wised up.

