The Chris Schmalz Podcast

What happens when the county approves your lot split, you find a buyer within a month, and then learn the lot is one-hundredth of an acre short of buildable? That's exactly where a widowed seller outside Idaho Falls found herself, with medical bills mounting and her only plan suddenly off the table. In this video, I walk you through the unlikely path that finally got her the cash she needed, on the kind of deal most agents would have walked away from. Watch my video to see how it came together.

I watched a couple chase the price of their own home down for two full years, trying three different ways to sell before it finally sold in one single week. The hard part? They could have had that exact same result at the very beginning. In this video, I walk through what actually happened: three attempts, two years of carrying a vacant home, and the one thing no agent had done for them until we sat down together. Watch my video to see how it unfolded.

Prices are still climbing, but buyers suddenly have more room to negotiate than they've had in years. Normally, those two don't happen together, and it's left a lot of people unsure whether to jump in or wait. In this video, I give you the honest answer on where the market's headed, and the one simple number that tells you which way your own neighborhood is leaning. Watch the full video and know exactly where you stand.

You've got a list of things you've been meaning to fix, and now you're selling, and you're wondering which ones actually matter. Here's what makes it hard: there are two completely different buyers shopping for your house, and they want opposite things. In this video, I break down what each buyer is worth in real numbers, why the gap between them is more lopsided than almost any seller expects, and what happens to the repair you decide to skip. Watch my video before spending a dollar on your house.

Two buyers fell out of contract on one of my listings in about five weeks. Yet that sale never went back on the market, not for a single day. There was one move that made the difference, and most sellers never think to ask for it. In this video, I show how a rough, as-is property drew multiple offers in a week, and the strategy that kept the deal alive through two collapses before closing. Watch now to see the move that saved this sale.

Imagine putting your home on the market, getting 26 showings over six months, and never once receiving an offer. That happened to sellers I worked with, and by the time they got to me they were worn out and starting to believe the problem was them. In my new video I walk through exactly what we changed before that same home went back on the market, and how it went from zero offers to an offer in about two days. Watch my video to see what actually makes a home sell.

If you're planning to sell your Southeast Idaho home this year, there's one competitor you might not be thinking about, and it's not the house down the street. Builders are active across the area, and more new homes are hitting the market in the exact price ranges most sellers live in. In this video, I break down how new construction is reshaping the market for sellers, the one pricing mistake that sends buyers straight to a new build, and the advantages your home has that a builder can't replicate. Watch my video before you list, so you go to market positioned to win.

Have you ever wondered why some homes sit for months, or even a full year, without ever selling? I want to tell you about a home right here in Pocatello that did exactly that, listed with two different agents and expired after more than a year. In this video, I walk through what was actually holding it back and the honest conversation that turned it around, including the one number I recommended that the sellers didn't expect. Watch my video to see what really makes the difference between a home that sits and a home that sells.

Are you planning to sell your home this spring? Before you start a major renovation, you should know that the most expensive upgrades are rarely the ones that give you the best return. According to the latest industry data, a new garage door can return nearly three times what you spend, while a high-end kitchen remodel returns less than 40 cents on the dollar. In this video, I’ll break down the three upgrades that actually pay off, the mistakes that eat into your profit, and how to choose the right contractor so the job gets done right. Watch my video to see where your money goes the furthest before you list.

If the last time you bought or sold a home was before 2024, the commission process looks a little different now. Back in 2024, the National Association of Realtors settled a major lawsuit that changed how buyer's agent fees are handled. The headlines made it sound dramatic, but the reality is a lot more straightforward than most people think. In my video, I break down what actually changed, why sellers are still covering the buyer's agent fee in most transactions, and what buyers and sellers need to know before jumping back into the market. Watch my video to get the full picture before your next move.