HOME sELLING
MADE EASY IN 7 SIMPLE STEPS!
Prepare & Stage your Property for Sale
01
To increase the odds of selling, and get the asked price; make sure your house is well-maintained, upgraded, and marketable. You can get the desired sale prices by yielding fixtures, minor repairs, installing new appliances, and renovations. Make sure your home is clean and clutter-free from the inside out. Most buyers make their decisions based on the first impression of your house. So, it’s better to prepare your house for sale before listing and finding qualified buyers. Remember to emphasize your property’s best sites and features.
Decide the Selling Price
Be very careful when you are about to quote the price of your house or property. Make sure to determine & set a suitable price for your property. As overpricing will make it out of reach for genuine buyers. Whereas low prices will degrade the property value.
How to determine your home’s market value?
The easiest way is to consult real estate agents, read classifieds, etc. to know the market rates in your location, and region. Also, find out the price at which comparable properties were sold in your neighborhood recently (last 3-6 months).
02
Hire a Real Estate Agent
03
An experienced, and licensed real estate agent can help you from navigating the selling process, pricing your property on Multiple Listing Services (MLS), marketing it to potential buyers, and negotiating offers to officially closing the house sale.
To make your house more presentable, and marketable, the agents also spruce up the interior and exterior of your house. In short, agents will be there for you until you get the asked price
List your House on MLS
The next step after finding a real estate agent is to showcase your house on MLS to attract potential & genuine buyers. So they can easily search and find your property online in the local region.
But, before listing your house you need to:
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Hire the local agent
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Decide the competitive & fair asking price.
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Compare the prices of properties sold nearby.
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Check if there are any renovations & repairs or recommended upgrades by your agent.
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Upgrade or fix kitchen appliances, or install new windows.
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Maintain the front and back yards (ground covering, planting new trees).
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Get a professional photoshoot of your property (most important).
04
Review and negotiate offers
05
Once you have listed your property, you’ll start receiving offers from several possible buyers. If you have already hired an agent, they’ll help you review, evaluate, and negotiate the offers on your behalf.
Generally, the real estate agents of buyers send written offers that include the final price they can afford to pay. Keep in mind that the price isn’t the same as listed on MLS. Rather it is usually lower than the asked price.
Fortunately, if the demand is higher in the seller’s market, you may get a better price i.e. above your asked price to grab the offer.
You have three options to respond to the received offer:
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The first is to accept the offer as it is.
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The second is to reject the offer
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The third is to make a counteroffer if you are interested in buying the property.
Accept the Offer
If somehow, you liked and accepted the offer, you have to sign the contract with the buyer that includes:
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The Sales Price.
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Payment details
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Final date when you’ll hand over the keys, and
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The buyer will move to the property.
If there are any contingencies like a home inspection or other such requirements, you can discuss them with your real estate agent. Usually, buyers make a request to repair the damages or upgrade the property, and provide money for fixtures which are deducted from the final sales price. As the buyer has the authority to withdraw, and walk away at any point if they are not satisfied or their requirements are not fulfilled.
Below are some common contingencies from a potential buyer:
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Home Inspection
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Appraisal
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Sale of another property
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Loan
A buyer may also ask for appraisal contingency while making an offer. It usually happens when the buyer is borrowing money from the mortgage lender to buy the house. If the allowed appraisal is lower than the cost of contingencies then the lender may ask you to slightly reduce the sales price.
06
Close Your Home Sale
07
The final step is to close the home sale after the home inspection or other essential contingencies are complete as requested by the buyer. The seller and buyer can mutually choose a location where they can complete the paperwork, and finalize the sale along with the:
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The real estate agent.
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the title company, and
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a closing attorney