Selling a home isn’t an achievement you can just write off like it was nothing, and you may find that actually finalizing a sale may have been one of the tougher tasks you’ve taken on.
A lot of things go into making a home presentable and desirable to potential buyers, and you’ll have to account for dozens of different factors when trying to convince a potential customer your property is their dream home.
While setting a solid asking price can be difficult as is, you may also have to negotiate with the buyers once they’ve made their offer, and many regard quality negotiating as an art form, especially when properly executed.
All of this makes it sound like you may just not be cut out for the role of a salesman, but you shouldn’t worry too much about it, as there are always shortcuts you can take to make this whole process easier for yourself.
By following a few simple tried and tested strategies, you too can sell a home at incredible speed, with an amazing price, and most importantly, with as little stress as humanly possible.
Find a solid real estate agent
If you’re looking to get as much money as you can out of your home, you may be tempted to try and sell it on your own, and while it may look like it’s good for your wallet, it could potentially end up costing you more.
However, you should also note that without an agent, you won’t be paying a commission fee, which can sometimes go up to 6% of the total profits you’d have when the sale is finalized.
It’s difficult to weigh which of the two options is more optimal, and it’s exactly why you should carefully examine your circumstances as well as your experience in the housing market.
A skilled agent can sell a home significantly faster than you ever could as a rookie, which might just make that commission fee worth your while.
On top of helping you sell it, an agent is also skilled in making your home look its finest, and whenever an offer pops up, they’ll respond professionally and swing the situation in your favor.
Listing your home
If you’ve already figured out who’s going to pilot the sale, the next thing on your agenda should be actually listing the home on the Multiple Listing Service, where one can run into sale ads for just about anything.
Before you do list your home, you’ll want to have figured out some sort of an asking price, and it’s for the best if you consult yourself with the real estate agent you’ve chosen if you plan on getting the most out of the home.
Before you upload any pictures of the home, make sure you’ve completed any necessary repairs that would make it more attractive to potential buyers, and don’t be stingy with this one.
A buyer may notice something you normally wouldn’t, and being thorough about these repairs is crucial when trying to fetch the highest price on your home.
By just rearranging your furniture ever so slightly, you can make the rooms look much more open and spacious, and with that, the pictures will look significantly better as well.
Review and negotiate
In the end, the final goal of your listing is receiving an offer from a potential buyer, and if you’ve done your job right, you may end up receiving multiple offers on your home.
If the buyers also employed a real estate agent, the communication will be in written form and delivered directly to your own agent, who will try to negotiate an acceptable price for the listing.
One thing to look out for is the market’s swings, and you’ll want to capitalize on high-demand cycles when buyers are willing to pay above the listing price just to secure the home for themselves.
Offers can be accepted, rejected, or responded to with a counteroffer, which is what usually happens when a buyer’s amount is close enough to your asking price that you’re willing to lower it for the sake of completing the sale.
Accepting an offer
Once you’ve received a satisfactory offer, the next step is signing the contract with the buyer, where you’ll agree on the move-in date.
However, this doesn’t mean that the process is over, and homebuyers often have a right to hire a home inspector before going through with the sale, and you’ll want to be prepared for when that happens.
Any minor issue with your home will be taken note of, and if enough of them pile on, a customer you thought was guaranteed may just change their mind, although most of the time they’ll just ask for you to cover the expenses of repairing the issues in the home.
Closing a sale
With everything out of the way, your home has finally been sold, and it’s finally time to close your mortgage, which is usually done at your buyer’s title insurance office.
At times, a different location can be agreed upon, although the closing process doesn’t necessarily have to take place in the physical realm.
Instead, you can close the sale virtually, through a video chatting service, which may end up saving time for all the parties involved.