How to sell your home mistake free
There have been loads of articles written about what you must do to sell your house, but seldom do we see an article that discusses how to sell your home mistake free. Knowing what you should avoid will help you if you want to sell your home fast and for the right price.
Don’t become emotionally involved. Once you have decided to sell your home, from that point on you must distance yourself from the emotional attachment you have to it. Easier said than done sometimes, but you must start thinking like a businessperson and look at it more from the financial perspective. If you can’t let go of thinking about all the cherished moments you had in the house, it will almost certainly end up costing you money. I discuss this more later.
Don’t think you can do the same thing an agent does. Real estate agents get paid a commission for a reason! If it is your first time to sell a home then it is definitely better to have an agent. They have tools to very accurately gauge what homes like yours will sell for and they have vast marketing organizations behind them that will get your home seen by the most potential buyers possible. Selling your home is truly a numbers game. The more people that know about your home the higher the price you will get for it. Agents can also help in negotiating home sales for you. They’ve been down the path many times and they know how to get good money for your home. Maybe most importantly, they are familiar with the massive amount of legal documents and tricky processes that most of us are not even aware of. This knowledge will help to assure that the transaction goes smoothly.
Don’t assume that you MUST hire an agent. Wait a minute! Didn’t I just say don’t assume you can do what an agent does? Well, yes. But hiring an agent is not an indispensable element in a smooth transaction IF you have had experience with the paperwork involved and/or you are a savvy marketer. There are many homeowners who prefer to sell their house themselves and have done just fine. The things you must ask yourself are, “Am I familiar with the necessary paperwork, am I capable of mounting a marketing campaign that will reach a lot of people and am I comfortable negotiating with buyers that have only their interests in mind?”
Don’t assume that just because your asking price is already the best you can do, that you are guaranteed to sell at that price. Remember that it is not you who will buy the house. Buyers have a lot of homes to choose from and they may not judge the value of your home the way you do. They haven’t lived there before so they don’t know how wonderful your neighbors are and they don’t have all the memories and cherished moments you do. They judge value based upon comparison to other similar homes, period. This is the most compelling reason for you to really understand the market and how your home compares to others. This leads us into the final “Don’t”.
Don’t set a price that is unrealistic. Most homeowners let their emotional attachment cause them to value their house more than the market will bear. Remember, the way you see your home and its value is different from the way the buyer sees it. The conventional logic is that the price should be set higher than the desired sell price because the buyer will try to negotiate. Unfortunately, the reality is that this approach can backfire into a situation that causes you to get less than the desired price! If you price your home too high you risk getting fewer showings because most buyers set upper limits on list prices they will look at. If you have set your price above their limit, they may not even ask their realtor to show the home. Another risk is having your overpriced home sit on the market for an extended period of time. If your home has been sitting for a while, that is the surest way to not get your asking price. Buyers notice this and, assuming you might be desperate, they become tougher negotiators. It’s the reality of the real estate world. So, set the right price at the beginning. Research the comparable homes in the area just like the buyers and the buyers’ agents do. Be ahead of the buyers, not behind them. It will save you money!
These are the common mistakes sellers commit and by avoiding them, you really improve your chances of selling your home quickly and smoothly… and for the right price!!