Selling your home involves just as much careful thought and preparation as buying a new home. Any real estate transaction can seem overwhelming, but if you are organized and properly set goals for yourself, you can make the whole process much less stressful.
Begin by asking yourself why you want to sell your home and write down all your reasons. If you can properly define why you are selling in the first place, it will help you get (and stay) on the right track. For your goals, write down if you want to sell your home within a certain time frame or make a certain amount of profit from the sale. Be sure to share your goals with your real estate agent so that you can set realistic time frames and work together to achieve them.
In today’s buyer’s market, the price of a home is usually determined by the competitive prices in the area instead of the actual value of the property. This means that sellers don’t have a lot of control over how to price their homes, and this is where your real estate agent’s knowledge and experience becomes invaluable. He or she should be able to give you a comparative market analysis and let you know the average time comparable homes in your area stay on the market. Keep in mind that you are better off setting a fair market value price than setting it too high, as studies have shown that homes that are priced too high usually take longer to sell.
Once you’ve decided to put your home on the market, start preparing it to be shown. Make sure to clean it inside out and from top to bottom. Make minor repairs to add value to it. Get rid of any clutter–holding a garage sale is very helpful way to do this. Bear in mind that first impressions are extremely important when selling your home, so make sure you do what you can to make it appealing to potential buyers.
Finally, get the word out. Work with your agent on coming up with a marketing strategy specifically designed for your home. There are a lot of ways you can market your home–through the use of print media, social media, Internet marketing and open houses. Be patient and diligent, and don’t lose sight of your goals. If you do things right, before you know it you’ll be handing over the keys to your house to its new owner.
