8 Steps to Selling a Home

Selling a home can be a lengthy process that can take a lot of time if you’re unprepared. Certain aspects can speed up or delay the sale, for example, a healthy market, which is why it is vital that you’re prepared and understand the entire process first. Not only is it imperative that you choose a reasonable price, but many other significant aspects need to be considered to sell your home quickly and in a way that will benefit you.

Here are a few steps to follow that can help make the process smoother for you:

1. Prepare Your Home for Sale

First impressions are crucial, and if you want to impress your buyers, you certainly don’t want your home to be unkempt or distraught with significant issues, such as mold or essential much-needed repairs. Your home should be appealing on the inside and the outside because you want to stand out against the other competition in your neighborhood.

A thorough power-cleaning can help your home look more appealing. Also, ensure that you get any necessary renovations and repairs done, or else this may come out of your sales price later. During the negotiation phase, later in the process, the buyer can ask for the price to be reduced to complete these repairs, so you should get it done beforehand.

2. Hire a Seller’s Agent

While you can complete the entire process on your own, it doesn’t hurt to have someone that can help guide you and make things easier for you when there’s much to do. Apart from word-of-mouth, you will need to list your property for sale, and a real estate agent will do that for you. A good real estate agent will know where to place advertisements and add all the criteria that you expect from a buyer.

A real estate agent has your best interests in mind as their fiduciary responsibility, and they will do everything keeping your requirements in mind.

When choosing one, make sure that you interview at least three and hire based on their experience and success stories.

3. Find Out the Value of Your Home

When you’re ready to set an asking price, it is vital that you quote the right price, or you may miss out on genuine buyers. If you choose a price that’s too high, your home will be on the market for longer, and if it’s too low, well, that’s a loss for you.

Ask your real estate agent to draw up a comparative market analysis; this is a detailed report providing information on the current market and a comparison of similar homes that were sold in the last few months.

If the market is a seller’s market, you can price your home at a higher value than those that were sold at a time when it wasn’t. However, if it’s during a buyer’s market, you will have to choose a lower price, so you don’t risk losing more value if it’s on the market for too long.

4. Pay Up All Dues

Before putting your home up for sale and showing it off, ensure that you’ve paid off any bills or dues towards your home. Even if it’s utility bills or property tax, ensuring that it’s paid-up provides reassurance to the new buyers that they won’t have any tension that they’ll have to pay off later while they’re looking at the home.

Not only is it unappealing, but leaving due bills behind will make buyers think that the current homeowners are not trustworthy and that there could be many other issues just waiting for them once they move in.

Apart from bills, find out about the transferring process and how it works in your neighborhood so that the process goes over smoothly.

5. Host Open Houses

An open house works exactly like a trailer does for a movie; it draws in potential buyers, impresses them, and gives them an insightful view of what their future could look like in your home.

Before you host an open house, ensure that your home is well-cleaned on the inside and out. Clean windows, doors, and stage the inside and outside of your home because this is what will attract buyers.

After you hold open houses, you may have several buyers approach you, and you can meet with them with your real estate agent to decide on a price and negotiate accordingly.

6. Negotiate Fees and Closing Costs

While there are certain fees specifically for buyers and sellers, occasionally buyers may ask you to cover some costs, and you, along with your real estate agent, can decide this when you meet. Once you’ve negotiated the sales price and reached an amount, other fees need to be considered, such as appraisal fees, escrow, and home inspection.

The buyer may ask you to cover or split these costs, and it’s up to you to make the decision or lower the sales price so that they can cover the costs. Sometimes, sellers cover these additional fees to avoid losing a client and potentially having their home lose value after being on the market for too long.

St. Charles

O’Fallon

Wentzville

7. Preparing for and Closing Escrow

You will be called to the closing table to meet with your buyers and sign the escrow documents depending on the closing date chosen. Your real estate agent can help you understand how to go about it and help you understand the documents before you can sign them.

After attending the appointment, sign the paperwork and hand over the keys, while your property deed will make its way into the public record. Depending on the date you’ve chosen, you will need to move out accordingly.

Celebrate Your Sale!

The above steps can help smooth the process and having your real estate agent by your side can also make a significant difference when they know the field well. Once your home is sold, you can relax and celebrate your success.