thinking of Selling your home?

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Selling your home can be  time-consuming and emotionally challenging, especially if you’ve never done it before. With little or no experience and a complex, potentially emotional transaction on your hands, it’s easy for home sellers to make mistakes, especially if they're first timers.   Read on to find out how to sell your house while getting the highest possible price within a reasonable time frame.

AVOID GETTING EMOTIONAL

When you're attached to a home and are selling, it's very easy to get emotional.  Once you decide to sell your home, start thinking of yourself as a businessperson and salesperson rather than just the homeowner. By looking at the transaction from a purely financial perspective, you’ll distance yourself from the emotional aspects of selling the property.   Also, if you keep in mind that you are selling a piece of property as well as an image and a lifestyle, you’ll be more likely to put in the extra effort of staging and doing some minor remodeling to get top dollar for your home. These changes in appearance will not only help the sales price; they’ll also help you create emotional distance because your home will look less familiar. 

ARE YOU GOING TO HIRE AN AGENT?

It's probably not a great idea to try to sell your home on your own, especially if you haven’t done it before. It can be tempting, but a good agent generally has your best interests at heart. They will help you set a fair and competitive selling price for your home and can also help tone down the emotion of the process by interacting with potential buyers.  Your agent will also have more experience negotiating home sales, helping you get more money than you could on your own.  Also if any problems crop up during the process, an experienced professional will be there to handle them for you.  

SETTING THE APPROPRIATE PRICE FOR YOUR HOME

Setting the right price for your home is essential.  The price you set for your home is 80% of the marketing... if you overprice your home, no marketing efforts will be able to overcome it.  Most people don’t like to overpay for any kind of purchase, never mind one as large as a home.  This is one of the areas where a Realtor comes in handy, they will provide an accurate competitive marketing analysis to determine a fair selling price. Another thing to keep in mind is that negotiation is part of the process.  The offers you receive may be lower than your asking price or the price you have in mind.  Be prepared to work with your Realtor to field offers and find just the right buyer for your home while getting you top dollar.

PREPARING FOR THE SALE

Performing repairs, both major (electrical issues, roof or AC repair) and minor (cleaning and painting) will make a huge difference in selling your home.  Any major issues will show up on the inspection, so it's best to have those items addressed before listing your home or be prepared to make concessions during negotiation.  Cleaning the home thoroughly and performing minor repairs will make the home more attractive to buyers and buyers' agents.  Failing to do these things can reduce your sales price and may also prevent you from getting a sale at all. If you haven’t attended to minor issues, such as a broken doorknob or dripping faucet, a potential buyer may wonder whether the house has larger, costlier issues that haven’t been addressed either.

Decluttering, cleaning thoroughly, putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls, and getting rid of any odors will also help you make a good impression on buyers.

WRAP UP

If you do your homework and hire an experienced real estate agent who can help you navigate the process, you should have the best opportunity to make the most of this significant transaction.\

ASK US FOR OUR HOME SELLER'S CHECKLIST TO MAKE YOUR HOME MARKET READY!