by Leland Howard, Medway Realty in FL
- Why are you selling?
You want to ask yourself – “Why am I selling my home?” Are you selling because you have a new job and need to relocate? Are you retiring to a new location? Are you ready for a life free of shoveling snow? Are you moving to be near family? Are you ready to cash in on your equity that has been accumulating in my property over the years?
The answer to these questions will help you and your Realtor determine the timing of your sale, the flexibility in pricing and whether any improvements need to be done prior to listing. So, what is your motivation for selling?
2. Get it ready.
It is important to get your house ready for the market. With your Realtor helping you, determine areas and items in your home that may need to be repaired, updated or changed prior to listing your home. It’s not a bad idea to have a pre-inspection performed on your home. For the cost of a few hundred dollars you will have valuable information that any buyer will eventually obtain and have the opportunity to address anything that the inspection reveals.
Some things may cost some money – like a new coat of paint, repairs to screens, and installation of new appliances. However, there is a lot you should do that won’t cost anything but are just as important: keep the lawn and landscaping well manicured (even plant some flowers) because how your home looks from the street is the first impression for a potential buyer; de-clutter your home – a lot; remove and store knick-knacks, personal family photos, items on the kitchen counter, everything from the front of the refrigerator, and messy office areas; and, organize your closets – they are a big selling point and a tidy closet looks bigger.
3. Hire the right Real Estate Agent.
Don’t try to sell your home yourself. You hire experts all of the time because they are the experts – doctors when you are sick, lawyers when you have a legal issue, dentists for your teeth, etc. Real estate is no different. Studies show that people who attempt to sell their home on their own receive an average of 26% less on their sale. That’s way more than the commission you pay a real estate agent. Hire someone who knows what they are doing, who has marketing experience, who knows how to negotiate real estate transactions, and who can manage the paperwork and transaction. Hire an expert that will do a great job of selling your home, on your time table and at the highest price. Don’t choose one just because they will charge 1% less in commission. That is short sighted and will actually cost you more in the long-run.
4. Always be ready to show your home.
One of the biggest mistakes we see sellers make is not having their home available for showings. You should be 100% ready, all of the time, to be able to leave your home at a moment’s notice and have it shown by a potential buyer. You never know where the real-deal offer is going to come from. Why would you want to exclude a potential buyer – just because you don’t like getting up early, or because it will be a hassle to leave your home for an hour in the evening? Not showing your home to ANY potential buyer at any time is self-destructive to your goal of selling your home at the highest price. Always be available.
5. Don’t take offers personally – be flexible.
You are eventually going to get an offer to buy your home, but it is likely not going to be the perfect offer at first. Avoid getting mad. Avoid getting your feelings hurt. We know – this has been your home for a long time and it is perfect to you – but a Buyer is looking at it from a different perspective. That isn’t saying anything bad about you or your home – it is just a different viewpoint.
When an offer does come in, listen to your realtor. Ask questions about the good, the bad and the ugly points of the offer. Talk it through with him or her. Then, make a decision about whether to accept, make a counter-offer, or reject it. But always remember, it is a financial transaction – not a dialogue about the history and memories you have in the home – those aren’t for sale along with your house!
6. Have a plan for moving.
Know where you are going to go after your house sells. Have a moving plan. It is rare that the sale of your current home and your new home will close on the same day. There is likely going to be some time gap in between. Have a solid plan of where you are going to go – you and your stuff – in the interim if need be. You will have enough going on as your home closing approaches, this isn’t something to try to pull together at the last minute (way too much stress).
Leland and Carrie Howard 