Watch on your mobile device >>
Once you have made the decision to sell your home, the next step is to put it on the market and get the word out! Hopefully, the home will sell in record time. But if you are like many homeowners these days, the number of sellers still outweighs how many interested buyers are out there. So how can you stand apart? How can you be sure that your home is the one attracting the most attention in the neighborhood? And aside from that positive feedback from the buying community, what can you do to get the most out of your listing and be successful? Here are three absolutely vital aspects of selling a home – that if followed are sure to help you successfully achieve your selling goals:
Do Your Homework and Be Prepared
The single most important thing you can do before even taking the first step in selling your home is to hire the perfect agent. This is not a matter of just finding the next person you know that deals with real estate professionally. Hiring an agent is a process that should be done carefully and with much thought. Does he or she take an active marketing stance? Are they accessible? Do they have a strong, solid and proven track record? What do recent clients say about dealing with this agent and/or broker?
Understand what your competition is selling. By knowing and understanding the other options buyers looking in the same area have, you will gain a competitive edge and be able to adjust your home based on the others’ offerings. One example is the comparison between an older home versus new construction. Though the amenities and number of bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage may be the same – buyers might easily prefer new construction. Your preparedness will help you overcome challenges such as this example perhaps by compensating with incentives or making updates to your home.
Strengthen the Perceived Value of Your Home
Now, more than ever, buyers are savvy and they know what to expect. That is why when they see several properties in one area they are able to easily distinguish a good deal from a not-so-good one. By working to enhance the perceived value of your home you can stand to gain significant leverage over other sellers in the area. One of the best examples of this is a new home that offers a 13-month warranty to go along with the sale. Nothing provides more reassurance to buyers than to have the sellers stand by their product. And if the home does have any issues, buyers know that the warranty will cover those issues. The typical cost of a home warranty is not more than $350-$400 but it can cost less depending on the coverage chosen and company. Imagine the edge you will have when buyers see most major components of the home as well as little things covered by a warranty plan.
One of the most damaging things you can do to the potential sale of your property is to price it inaccurately. Though homeowners are free to price their home as they wish, once area comparable sales, appraisals and inspections, as well as buyers’ perceived value are taken into consideration, prices can change dramatically. It is important to know your competition, assess your property as compared to that competition and then price the home accordingly. Overpricing can clearly lead to lack of buyer interest while underpricing can backfire in more than one way; the seller would obviously get less money and also buyers could potentially be turned off thinking that something is wrong with the property.
~
For a customized assessment of your home’s selling position and for an analysis of how much you can potentially sell your home for – contact us today!
