All you need to know to Sell Home Fast

Agent or By Owner?

Decide whether you want to sell your house with a Real Estate Agent or on your own. Both ways have advantages and disadvantages. Read more in "Set the Price & Decide who your Buyer is" section.

Identify problems

You are obligated to disclose any major problems or flaws in the structure or property. These may include things like dry rot, asbestos, termites, septic problems, or a new highway slated to run nearby. Things that you have to disclose may vary by state, but if you fail to mention the flooding basement or structural issues, you could be sued for fraud.

Therefore, consider getting a professional home inspection to know the possible problems with your house. Most of the time, you will not be able to hide problems anyway since most buyers will have the home inspected before closing.

Inside - Clean! And keep it clean

This is a very important one; make sure that everything is spotless. Remove all clutter from every room, including closets. Organize your basement and attic. Have a garage sale with all the stuff you don't want to move to your next home! Wipe down and paint walls and trim if necessary. Clean all windows, light fixtures and ceiling fans. Pay particular attention to the bathrooms and the kitchen. Bathrooms should always be squeaky clean. In the bathrooms, towels should be fresh and clean, sinks and baths scrubbed, and the floor freshly cleaned. In the kitchen, make sure all dishes are put away and countertops and sinks cleaned. Don't do any major remodeling, but repainting with a neutral color palette will definitely help to appeal to a wider range of potential buyers.

'Staging'

Staging can help sell your home faster. Staging - a suggests that your home and property are in the best condition - the props of paint, home furnishings, fresh flowers, even sparkling windows - so the potential buyers can picture themselves living in this home. Highlight the bath and kitchen by selecting some attractive new towels, curtains or cabinetry knobs. All this will hasten the time it takes for the "SOLD" sign to appear on your lawn.

Depersonalize

Remove most if not all of the "imprint" that you have made on the house. Having few family pictures around is fine, but if your home walls or desks are full of personal pictures, you should take some steps to depersonalize it. Buyers must be able to envision themselves in the home.

Curb Appeal

Even if your home is in good shape, there are probably a few things you can do to make it really sparkle. This is what's known as "curb appeal," and experts agree that making a good first impression is a crucial factor in attracting buyers. Improving your home's curb appeal can be as easy as tidying up the yard, washing windows, touching up exterior paint or even adding a new bed of flowers.

Setting the Price & Deciding who your Buyer is

This is a tricky part that mostly depends on your situation - why you're selling your home. Along with location and condition, the price of a house is one of the major reasons why a house will or will not sell quickly. Some sellers have a tendency to put too much emphasis on the price and not enough on the condition, ending up with a house that is overpriced for its current condition and the overall market. You need to do a research on what your house value is (keeping in mind the condition, area, number of bedrooms & bathrooms, basement, square footage, etc.). If you're looking at the listed houses in your area - you're going wrong direction. The listing price is not a market value. I can list a house for 400k, but it may sell only for 300k because 400k was not a market value. To determine an approximate market value, you need to look at the recent sales (in the current market, no more than 9 months back) and calculate an average price - this is the market value.

After you determine the market value, the next thing to consider how much you will ask or sell your house for. If you need to sell it quickly - within couple weeks or a month - drop the price by 10-20%, and look for investors. If you're behind on mortgage payments or facing a Foreclosure or Bankruptcy, consider lowering the price more or even sell it for a loan balance, just to make the lender happy. Investors are you best bet if you need to sell house quickly; most of the time the end result - the amount you get at the closing - is the about the same as if you sell using a Realtor. The major difference though - investors will actually buy your house, while Realtors will commit to represent you and list your house without a guarantee to sell.

If you are in no hurry, you can try keeping the price right at the market value or increase it. The good thing is that you may find someone who might be willing you pay a higher price, but you need to remember, you will spend much more time on the market. Also, if you find a buyer, who is willing to pay the high price, you need to be aware of the fact that that buyer still needs to apply for a mortgage. The chances are that if the house is overpriced, the lender's appraisal will force the price back down to market value.

Figure out the financial results of your sale.

Your Net Sale

Know exactly what you'll net from the house sale. The amount you owe the bank is not the only number to consider. Don't forget the selling expenses such as discount the seller will ask, which can be 3-10% on average, buyer/seller agent's commission (averate about 6%), don't forget the mortgage payments, insurance, taxes - the holding costs. You will not sell the house instantly, you will still need to pay to the mortgage and insurance company and even HOA and make sure your taxes are current. You may even get some cash back at closing for prepaid local taxes, home insurance. What about the closing costs, attorney fees and even repairs? If a buyer brings a home inspector, you will get a 30-item list asking you to fix the house. In addition, don't forget to take into account your moving costs.

Well, looking at all this list, you may think - there is nothing left to me from the equity I thought I had. Good news is that you can always sell your house As Is and not worry about extra things you might be asked to do.

Get more information on what price you may net here.

Showing your House

It is that time... Open every window covering (drapes, curtains and blinds), turn on as many lights as possible - all rooms need should be as light as they can be. Buyers like a house to be "light and bright"!

Make sure the house smells good. Eliminate pet odors, smoke, or greasy cooking odors. Do not use any plug-ins or candles with some specific smells (what you like, for others that smell might be a drawback); make it fresh and neutral. Some recommend Baking cookies smell, but play with that carefully. Whatever you do, don't overdo it. Airing out the house just before the scheduled showing will help to get some freshness.

Remember, remove all the all the clutter. No clutter! Keep it Clean!

Check the thermostat to make sure that the house is at a comfortable temperature.

If you have any pets, we suggest removing pets from the house, or at least, keep them outside. Pets under foot may put a damper on an otherwise positive showing, if the buyers are not pet lovers.

Closing and settlement

Whoever you are working with - Realtor, Investor or Buyer - you need to know how to prepare for the closing. Buyers (if they are not also investors) may not know it all what is required or how they need to prepare for the closing. Realtors and Investors, if they know what they're doing (this is a good screening tip!), most of the time will explain you step by step what is involved in closing on your property, what paperwork you will need, in general, who needs to do what and when.

 

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