A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Sell Your House
You don’t need a real estate agent to sell your house.
You can do it all by yourself – and the best part is that the process is quite straightforward. Today, you can even sell it online. But what steps help you get the most value out of the process? Here are practical tips on how to sell your house:
1. Prep Your Home for the Sale
Your house should be in the best condition possible before you approach any buyer. Make necessary repairs and fixes and get the rooms decluttered, cleaned, and organized. You should also toss your personal items in bags and put waste in different bins.
Donating personal items you no longer use may be a good idea. This helps create an appealing space with the right accents, décor, and furniture.
You can also paint the rooms with a neutral paint color like beige to improve their appeal. Get the floors and carpet cleaned too. Clean floors help create a good impression on the potential buyers.
With the rising concerns about energy-efficient homes, an Energy Star Certification may come in handy. The document is used to assign energy efficiency ratings on properties.
2. Choose an Ideal Timeline for the Sale
So, what is the home selling process? It begins when you list your house for sale.
Carefully assess the amount of effort and time needed when selling your house. Your local market, the situation, and your home’s desirability will impact the sale timeline. On average, it takes close to 26 days for a house to get a buyer and 46 days to close the purchase.
3. Analyze the Your Local Market Inventory
A thorough inventory analysis will reveal the number of homes that are on sale. With this information, you can gauge the amount of competition your property will get. Use it to decide when to make a listing for your home and set a price.
You may find a chart depicting your town’s inventory supply from a real estate agent. The agent can also help you interpret the findings to improve the sale.
Less competitive prices on the market mean that your property can sell at a higher price and vice versa.
4. Estimate Your Property’s Current Market Value
Conduct brief market research to determine your home’s potential selling price. You can use real estate market data and automated valuation models to get these estimates. Most online home estimate tools only require your address when you’re using them.
Ask a realtor for a thorough comparative market analysis (CMA) for your property. The CMA analyzes sold houses in your location and compares them with your property. This tool also analyzes your home’s desirability factors such as proximity and square footage to give its fair market value.
Find the right price to avoid underpricing or overpricing your house. You can also get a pre-listing appraisal for a professional opinion of your home’s value. The professional opinion will be based on a thorough inspection of your house carried out by a licensed appraiser.
5. Weigh Your Selling Options
You can sell the house with an agent’s help or compare different money offers from potential buyers. Using the for-sale-by-owner (FSBO) route may also work. However, you need to thoroughly assess these options to get great value from the sale.
When you hire a real estate agent, they will guide your home prep efforts. They will also give you a CMA, market your house and bring in potential buyers for walkthrough visits. The agent will also negotiate offers and handle lots of complex paperwork on your behalf.
Looking for ways on how to sell a house to a cash buyer? Well, this strategy may work if you need money quickly. You get to close the sale in days and avoid opening up the property to many strangers for viewing.
Listing your property as FSBO allows you to act as an agent and avoid paying commission fees. You need to prep and price the house right, carry out viewings, and negotiate well for this to work. The downside is that the house may sell for less money or take time to sell if you overprice it.
6. Find the Right Buyer and Negotiate
At this stage, offers should have started coming in depending on how you prepared the house. Carefully choose among the multiple offers presented. You should also make counteroffers when presented with different offers.
Submit your best offer into an escrow as you sign a legal agreement for the property. The title company or escrow company will gather relevant payments and documents in the sale.
Have a real estate lawyer resolve any trust complications, liens/judgments, and lender balances. The lawyer should also help you settle any encroachments and property taxes on the house.
7. Close the House Sale with Confidence
If you’re selling the house through a broker, ask the agent about the paperwork needed to close the sale. You’ll have to sign the property to its new owners and hand over the relevant items attached to it.
Carefully review the final closing documents before signing them. You should also assemble the relevant paperwork (manuals and warranties) and keys/door openers. Move out as soon as you receive the sale proceeds of the house.
While moving out, double-check the crawl spaces, cabinets, or closets for any personal items. Remember to shut off the valves to prevent fires or flooding as the new owner prepares to move in. Get your address changed and forward mails to your new address.
Need More Help on How to Sell Your House Fast?
Is the whole selling my house process stressing you out? The tips discussed above on how to sell your house will help ease the process. Remember that your home’s value is as good as the quality of its interiors, exteriors, and attachments.
Looking for a place to sell your house for fast cash? Call or text us today!
