Selling a home in today’s market can be tricky and expensive. You want to maximize the return on your investment, but many sellers fall prey to common pitfalls that can actually cost you more money and delay the sale of your home. If you want to sell your home fast, you should avoid these mistakes and instead try a few troubleshooting alternatives.
Prepare Your Home for Showing
Buyers want to see a home that’s staged – not one that’s filled with your clutter and family mementos. If you want a quick sale, you’ll need to clear out your home and stage your furniture. Your house should look stylish, open, and move-in ready. Buyers are less impressed with the “lived in” look.
- Find a professional to help stage your home. Your realtor may be able to recommend someone.
- Hire a photographer to take photos of your home. If you have access to a wide-angle lens and camera, you could take them yourself. The more photos you include, the more attention your house will draw.
- Make a promo video for your home. You can post your video onto social media or YouTube. Combine photos, video clips, and an energetic song that will grab people’s attention. If you live near city amenities, include these as well.
Think Like a Buyer
When you’re trying to sell your home, it’s normal to focus on how to make the sell, but this could cause you to lose favor with buyers. To appeal to a buyer, your home needs to look like the move-in ready home of their dreams. It needs to be priced in the right window and be popular with other buyers. A buyer doesn’t trust a home that’s been sitting on the market for too long. If no one is interested, then why should they be? You need to give buyers a reason to bite your hook.
- Make your home look popular by staging open houses.
- Lower the price to match comparable properties. If a home nearby is selling for less than yours, then buyers are unlikely to pay more for your home.
- Withdraw and resubmit your listing so that it appears new.
Think Carefully Before Rejecting an Offer
Sometimes a buyer will offer less than what you think your home is worth, but in reality, your house is only worth what a buyer will pay. Before you reject an offer, review all of the facts and options. Accepting a lower offer may be the best option on the table.
- Review listings for similar homes.
- Look into how much was paid for recently sold homes.
- Talk to your Realtor and other experts, such as your home inspector.
- Consider how long you can afford to stay in the house.
Avoid Putting All of Your Trust in a Realtor
Realtors can be a great asset in your corner, but they may not be thinking about the quick sale. Additionally, not all Realtors have the same reach with buyers. Luckily, you can boost your listing on your own and increase your chances of a fast sell.
- Check major Realty sites like Trulia.com, www.homes.com, and www.zillow.com to make sure that your home is featured.
- Post your home on local classifieds sites, including Craigslist.
- Take out an eBay listing.
- Share your home’s listing on social media. Ask friends and relatives to do the same.
- Consider a cash buyer. Home investors can give you an easy quote, often within 24-48 hours. Your house could be sold by the end of the week.
Don’t Wait for a Better Market or Upgrades
There’s no guarantee that the market will improve. In fact, it may even get worse. Additionally, completing upgrades in your home can begin an unending timetable that continues to cost you, even as you’re trying to leave the home. Sometimes sellers make these upgrades only to find that buyers don’t consider them to be the investment that the seller expected. Delaying your listing could cost you money and time that you can’t afford to lose.
- Avoid sinking more money into a property that won’t recoup your losses.
- Get your home on the market quickly.
- Don’t try to read buyers’ minds.
- Sell your home as-is to a cash buyer.
Selling your home quickly doesn’t have to be a fantasy. By avoiding these common pitfalls, you can save yourself time and money so that you can move on with your life. Take control of your home listing today to get money in your hand fast.