Selling your home can be stressful and very time consuming! I know I have sold several of my own! From showings to movers and all in between it’s enough to make you want to pull your hair out!
Well, stick with me here because I have 10 tips for getting the most out of selling your home that will make it a bit easier for you to manage!
HIRE THE RIGHT REAL ESTATE AGENT TO HELP YOU!
KNOW WHAT OTHER HOMES HAVE SOLD FOR IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD OR AREA!
MAKE MINOR REPAIRS COMPLETED BEFORE SELLING!
DECLUTTER AND CLEAN YOUR HOME BEFORE PUTTING IT ON THE MARKET!
PREPARE A PLAN FOR YOUR NEXT MOVE!
HAVE FINANCING IN ORDER FOR YOUR NEW PURCHASE(UNLESS PAYING CASH)!
MAKE SURE IT’S NOT AN EMOTIONAL MOVE!
CONSIDER PAYING FOR AN APPRAISAL BEFORE LISTING!
STAGE YOUR HOME WITH NEUTRAL COLORS!
PRICE YOUR HOME WITHIN MARKET VALUE RANGE FOR THE MOST TRAFFIC AND OFFERS!
These are just a few tips for getting the most out of selling your home! The most important one would be to find an agent that you are compatible with and trust to guide you through the process. Whether it’s been 20 years or 3 years since you have sold a home, having a trusted professional on your side is always best. I find that when a seller and agent work together towards the same end goal the selling process runs much smoother!
If you feel like you can relate please feel free to share your experiences and tips for helping others. I know I have been able to guide many buyers and sellers to the next chapter of their life and it feels to good to lend a helping hand!
How much is my house worth? This is very important. You must speak with a trusted real estate agent who can run a free comparative market analysis to see what properties around yours have sold for in the last 6 months!
What is your commission? This is how much the real estate company charges for listing and marketing your home to other real estate companies and prospective buyers! This varies depending on the area of the country you are in and the real estate office you choose. Typically it’s 6% of the sale price in most areas! (On average, a home listed with a trusted real estate company sells 10% higher than an individual selling their home)!
Do I need to make any repairs? It depends on what type of repairs you have, minor ones will need to be done ideally before listing and others can be negotiated during a transaction between buyer and seller. In some cases, for instance, home insurance may cover roof damage or a similar repair depending on the circumstances.
How fast can my house sell? This depends on the housing market, the motivation a seller has to move and the cooperation of all parties involved such as the lender, buyer’s agent, title company, inspector and appraiser. All parties working together along with you and your agent make for a smooth and fast sale, as long as there are no unforeseen issues that arise!
What is my “bottom line” after fees? Most seller’s want to know what is the net amount they will take home after all expenses and fees are paid. This varies depending on many factors such as the price of the home, the title fees, realtor fees and the payoff amount owed to the bank, if any! The listing agent should go over a seller’s net sheet when meeting with you about selling your home and give you an estimated amount before listing and closing on your home! This will not be an exact amount due to what day the actual closing is because of tax prorations, etc.; however, it will be a great guide to help you when financially planning your next move!
These are some common questions I get as a real estate agent! There are several steps to selling a home and if done right can be a fairly smooth process. When is a good time to sell? Many different reasons!
When you need to upgrade!
When you need to downsize!
When you have a job change!
Health Reasons!
Closer to family!
All good reasons to sell, right? One major reason could be the market is experiencing what we call a “seller’s market!”
This will allow you to get the most out of your home and save for another home, to pay off debt, or for other reasons such as, you might need fast cash or you may want investment property!
Staging is a bit different than decorating a home. It’s cleaning, decluttering and organizing your home to appeal to the largest pool of buyers in the market to purchase a home! A staged home can potentially net a seller 1% to 5% more for their home vs. one that is not staged.
Buyer’s often visualize themselves living in your home during the showing. This is why staging a home is so important. The benefits are they can see the rooms, their intended use and how they will place their furniture once they own the home. Staging takes out all of the guess work for a buyer. Both the buyer and seller benefit from staging in more ways than one. Here are some staging tips for you when planning to put your home on the market.
Clean and Declutter– make sure your home looks clean and smells clean and all things that you are not using can be stored away. (mixers, toasters, gym equipment, toys etc…).
Depersonalize– make sure you remove all personal photos, degrees, awards, trophy’s etc.. this is not something a buyer wants to see in a home they potentially want to live in.
Define spaces– defining rooms and space for their intended use is very helpful to a buyer so they visualize themselves and their belongings in the home.
Paint– paint is one of the most inexpensive things you can do to your home to give it an updated feel and helps get you closer to your asking price of the home.
Lighting– make sure all of your lightbulbs work and have been replaced so that each room has adequate lighting for potential buyers.
Furniture– minimize the furniture used for staging each room so that the buyer can see the space and visualize their furniture in the space.
Neutral colors– you want to use neutral colors when staging because this shows off your home as a blank canvas for the potential buyer to again, see themselves in the space and actually living there.
The bottom line is that staging a home helps it sell faster and for more money! What a seller is looking for at the end of the day! Selling your home for the most money in the least amount of time and with the lowest amount of stress possible!
A question I get often is “HOW MUCH SHOULD I OFFER?” I give my professional opinion based off of the current real estate market! The answer depends on the following things:
What is the current market like in your area? Meaning what has sold around the desired property in the last 6 months or less?
What is the condition of the desired property?
Is it in a desired location?
How much are you comfortable paying for the property?
The most important question I always ask my clients is:
Will you be upset if your offer doesn’t get accepted?
Is this the house?
On a scale from 1-10 how much do you like this home? (8-10) should be your answer if making an offer!
How do you feel about the monthly payment?
The answer is do your homework and have a trusted real estate agent to guide you to make the best offer for the home. Feel good about your offer whether it gets accepted or not.
3 Tips on how NOT to arrive at your offer price!
DON’T LOOK AT THE TAX RECORDS TO SEE WHAT THE SELLER PAID. THIS DOESN’T MATTER, THE MARKET HAS MOST LIKELY CHANGED.
DON’T GO BY THE VALUE WHEN SEARCHING ONLINE. THIS IS ONLY AN ESTIMATE, NOT A TRUE ANALYSIS.
DON’T GO IN LOWER THINKING THE SELLER WILL MEET YOU HALF WAY!
The best advice when putting in an offer on a home in this market is:
HIGHEST AND BEST, meaning what you feel comfortable paying for the home of your dreams!
Current market statistic:
Sellers are receiving 100%-!06% of list price in our current market, on average, this obviously can fluctuate up or down depending on your location.
This other company said they would sell if for less!
A real estate company fee varies from state to state and even company to company. The typical fee depending on the area you are in and real estate company is 6%. What does that really mean? It means 6% of the selling price of the home.
This is commonly known. What isn’t commonly known is how the commission at a real estate company gets broken down. In my real estate experience this is how it typically works.
The listing agreement is between the seller and the real estate firm or brokerage. The brokerage/Principal Broker has ownership of the listing once the agreement is signed between the seller and the listing firm.
The real estate firm pays their listing agent a portion of the 6%. The listing firms keeps 3% and the listing agent gets a portion of the 3% depending on the agreement the listing agent has with the broker/firm. For example: if the listing agent has a 70/30 split with the company, the agent will receive 70% of the 3% that is paid to the company from the home sale. The other 3% goes to the buyer’s agent firm, their firm splits the 3% with them according to their agreed split.
This question of how much is different depending on the agent, their firm and the agreement a seller makes with the firm. The above example is just one example of many different ways the fee could be split.
The misconception is that the listing agent receives all 6% of the sales price of the home. This is not the case at all!
Let’s break down a $100,000 home for example:
Firm and seller agree on 6% commission once the home sells. The homes sells for $100,000. The listing firm receives $6,000. The buyer’s agent is from another firm who brought the buyer to the listing. The buyer’s agent firm receives $3,000 and the listing firm receives $3000. Let’s say in this case that both the listing agent and buyer’s agent at their respective firms each have a 70/30 split. Each agent would receive $2100 each. This is only if the real estate firms do not have any other fees they charge their agent. In most cases they do. Fees such as E&O, desk fees, transaction fees, marketing fees, signs fees etc…(typical transaction fee is $300). This would come out before the agent received his/her commission check. In this particular case the agents would be receiving around $1800 apiece.
The commission from state to state varies.
The commission can be negotiated in some cases.
The commission is not always 6%.
When a firm or company has a really low fee such as 1% or 2% make sure you ask what their marketing plan is for your home. Most of the time it is only adding it to the MLS and placing a sign in the yard. There is much more to marketing and selling a home than those two things.
Cheaper is not always better!
Find a trusted Realtor that has a great marketing plan in place.
Make sure you interview more than one.
You get what you pay for is a true statement in this business.
Listing vs. selling on your own puts more money in your pocket at the end of the day.
Be aware of asking for a discounted commission, this could mean dropping services that would have normally been provided to you.
The commission is only one part of the cost in selling your home. The title company will have title fees. This varies depending on what title company you use. There could be requested repairs by the buyer ,seller concessions such as paying a buyer’s closing costs, or a home warranty etc…
Make sure your real estate agent sends you a seller net sheet to show your net proceeds after all closing costs and fees.
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