Selling a home admittedly isn't like ordering a pizza. It's a process with red tape that must be completed. So, despite technology making things faster, there's a limit to its help in real estate.
Sure, you can place your home in a position to fast-track offers coming in and get better deals.
And with the proven tips that sellers have used for a long time. Here are 10 secrets of selling your home faster.
10 Secrets to Sell Your Home Faster
1. Pick A Strategy that Works for You
All successful real estate investor has a strategy. It's a simple decision to either sell your home by yourself, use an agent, or sell as a flipper upper
If you're confident you can pull it off on your own, or crave a challenge, go for it. Assuming that you also have the time, keep in mind there's a better chance of selling at a higher price with a real estate agent.
When you're looking to offload a house quickly or as a flipper upper, you can sell to iBuyers like Zillow and OpenDoor. It's also the plan of action for damaged homes or if you can't afford renovations. But this strategy won't get you top-dollar.
After choosing a strategy, follow it through. It's about selling, and clients get pissed off by instability. So don't be that guy.
2. Hire A Competent Agent
A good real estate agent takes selling the house off your hands. He markets the property, takes them on house tours, and negotiates with clients on your agreement.
Furthermore, you must build trust with your agent because they'll have almost 24/7 access to the home. Check for references and have other options. If you want a competent agent — who doesn't? — you must learn how to hire one.
Ask pertinent questions during the interview is one sure way to separate the wheat from the chaff.
3. Keep The House Clean
It hurts that I have to say this, but thorough cleaning is the fastest way to get rid of the for sale sign. And I'm not even talking about renovations and repairs now.
Hire professional cleaning services if you can't do it yourself or are preoccupied. They'll attend to every corner of the house, and you should do your best to maintain the new status of the house afterwards. It could take a while before even an accepted offer is closed.
Declutter the house of items you haven't used in a year or box them up.
4. Turn It Into a Buyer's House (Declutter)
This is somewhat similar to decluttering — making space. But what this really entails is removing personal items marking the house as your territory. It helps potential the house as a home where they build their future. Personal items include but aren't limited to:
- Wallpapers and family photo frames
- Private collections
- Kids toys and artwork
- Religious and political memorabilia
Another thing you can do is to paint the rooms with a neutral color like gray, beige, or ivory. Then, a buyer immediately daydreams colors to use if they moved in or can live with the current wall paint.
5. Lit Is Safe and Memorable
Top real estate agents opine that clients prefer a naturally lit house in photo shoots or open houses. Lift the drapes and let the soft rays beam bright on the furniture. If you leave for an evening grocery run, leave the lights on.
You never know, a soft breeze gently blowing the curtains could be the rare gem that seals the deal for a lovestruck buyer. And there goes a client ready to pay a handsome premium for your home.
Romance aside, a well-lit house puts clients at ease shows a home in good light — pun intended.
6. Stage the House — House Staging
Selling your house, like any commodity, is about your customer.
How do you put a home buyer in the spotlight? First, you make them see your house as where they can make a home.
House staging involves redecorating with furniture and drapes that give the house a neutral appearance. It's like decluttering but also rearranging and furnishing the house to a client's taste.
Somehow, real estate agents seem to only play this card when a house has been sitting for too long on the market. You should start early now or hire professional stagers if it's a hassle. It's what sells, and you'll be serving it on a platter.
7. They Go All Out on the Creatives Maximize Listing Creative (Photos and Videos)
With Zoom calls and wearing shorts behind the desk the norm, your online listing has to be golden. A report shows that eighty-five percent of homebuyers take to listings when searching for homes. And most of them find photos particularly useful.
A listing with professionally taken photos gives a good first impression. I find taking shots at chest angle in landscape mode gives clients a realistic assessment of the house. The popular IG handle, @zillowgonewild, portrays result-driven examples to learn from.
A hot trend in selling "luxurious" country houses is virtual house tours with 3D drones. Some homeowners even make augmented reality videos to add a touch. An inside joke is that friends vloggers with racecar chairs are fanboys for these listings.
The caveat now is that clients now have a close-up view of the entire house. Therefore, presenting your house in near perfect condition is now a priority. Small misalignments like loose fittings and cat scuffle marks may stop many from making the first call.
8. Landscape and Pimp Out Exterior
The saying "you don't get a second chance to make a first impression" rings loudly in real estate.
And what better way to make a first impression than newly painted fences and a well-pruned lawn surrounded with potted and bedded plants.
Unsurprisingly, most homeowners don't mind hiring a landscape service. It's one of the cardinal projects for positive ROI and better offers.
This means it's also time to give up that rusty mailbox with a broken handle and repaint the house number. It furthers the neutral accent to the house, waiting to be painted by the dreams of your clients.
Always leave lights on even if you're out of the house when it's actively listed.
9. Renovate the Right Way
Spending a little fortune on the right renovation projects puts you in a position to drive a hard bargain. Kitchens and bathrooms have the best ROI on remodelling projects. A minor kitchen or bathtub remodel for some thousand bucks could give back almost a hundred percent on resale.
Explore the neighborhood and observe the repairs that are carried out. In most locations, garage and entry door reinforcement gets clients' trust and increases house value.
Maximizing a house's value means giving most buyers something less to repair, reinforce, or replace. If it's too much hassle or unprofitable after appraisal, selling it as a flipper upper could be your best option.
10. Be flexible with showings
Let's face it, the whole point of learning these secrets is to get offers and take down the "for sale" sign as soon as possible.
While that happens, people want to check the property out in their free time, which can be difficult schedule-wise. But that's one perk of hiring a realtor — you take the stress of meetings out of your hand.
But that's not the end. You still need to prepare yourself to leave the house for unexpected visits. And don't consider using the 24-hour notice option — clients hate it. But, ironically, clients with urgent visitation end up showing the best interest.
Once you have been successful, realize that the figurative “closing of one door” means the “opening of another door”. How are you going to deal with the opening of the new door(s)? What are you going to do with the proceeds from the sale (assuming you sold for more than what was owed on the house). How are you going to use this as a financial and personal stepping stone to your future. Whatever you choose, look for good advice for help and support. Make sure that your next move, is moving you forward but still protecting all that you have achieved.
When “planning” around life, the experts at Reardon & Associates can certainly be of help. We can guide you through the path of all the “things” that we need to take care of to plan to “Live a Good Life for the Rest of Our Life”. Give us a call.
Reardon & Associates Insurance and Financial Services
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