7 Tips for First-Time Home Sellers
A number of economists are forecasting an increase in home sales this
year, and some are predicting that more first-time buyers will be in
the mix.
That’s great news for sellers, particularly first-time sellers most
likely to have the kind of starter homes these buyers will want. Below
are some tips for those selling a home for the first time.
Prepare for your own purchase
Before selling your home, give some careful thought about where you
will live next, said Hedda Parashos, owner of Palisade Realty in Spring
Valley, Calif. “Planning ahead will save the time and money associated
with moving multiple times or trying to get out of a deal after you sign
a purchase agreement,” she said. “Your Realtor can help you locate a
new home or rental before you close escrow or negotiate a lease back.”
If your plan is to buy another home and finance it, get preapproved
for a mortgage. That way, you’ll know what you will be able to
afford—and can eliminate surprises, she added.
It’s also getting more common these days—in certain markets—to
purchase a home contingent on the sale of your existing one, said
Christina Esala, associate broker and team leader with Tierra Antigua
Realty, in Tucson, Ariz.
Get the home move-in ready
If you can afford it, do whatever you can to make your home move-in
ready. That means replacing ripped screens, broken baseboards, leaky
faucets and making cosmetic repairs, as well as updating landscaping,
Parashos said. Your house needs to be in showing condition all the time,
she added.
At this point, start looking at your home as a house—stripping all
sentimental value from the place, since your buyer won’t care about the
tree you planted or the kitchen tile you installed yourself, said Geoff
Bray, real-estate agent and partner at the Reuter Bray Group of RE/MAX
Results in Minneapolis.
Enlist the help of a good real-estate agent
Many people choose real-estate agents based on referrals from family
and friends, but look beyond that to make sure you’re working with
someone who does a lot of business in your particular neighborhood.
While sales information for individual agents often isn’t publicly
available, you could check with your local Realtor association group for
the data, call the local multiple-listing service or ask a brokerage
about their top sellers.
Online reviews of real-estate agents can also be helpful, Esala
added. At the very least, get statistics from the agent, asking him or
her how many homes they’ve sold recently, where the homes have been
located and what the average sales prices have been, Esala said.
Price it right
A good real-estate agent will help you price the home right—from the
start. “Nothing will attract more buyers than making the right choice
when pricing your home and nothing will deter buyers more than
overpricing,” Parashos said. Overpricing often means a longer stay on
the market as well as future price cuts—which often makes a home listing
look stale and less desirable.
Market the home appropriately
In addition to getting on the multiple-listing service, or MLS, as
well as home listing sites online, your real-estate agent might
recommend other methods of advertising, including open houses and direct
mail postcards. Ask the agent how he or she plans on marketing the
property before hiring the agent.
Quality photography of the home is also important. Those who use
professional real-estate photos sell listed homes 32% faster than all
other listings, according to VHT Studios, a real-estate photography
network for homes and businesses. Take it for what it’s worth, a
statistic from a company in the photography industry. But also think
about the homes that you spend the most time looking at online; chances
are they’re the ones with a variety of clear, quality pictures.
Make the house available
Some sellers create restrictions on when their home can be shown, but
being inflexible on this point can hurt you. “People, if they want to
see it now…they’re going to contact that agent and going to want to see
it immediately,” Esala said. “Make your home available for all of the
daylight hours,” she said. Otherwise, within two days, prospective
buyers will find another home and forget yours.
Plan your negotiation
Know what you will and won’t give up when it comes to your sale, from
price to closing date, repairs to closing costs. “Knowing what outcome
you want in advance will help you avoid haggling over minor items that
could cost you the sale,” Parashos said.
Finally, don’t focus as much on the final sales price as on the final
net price, Bray said. Many first-time buyers ask for sellers to help
with closing costs, for example, which affects the net cost.
--
Ron Goldstein,MBA
Certified Luxury Broker@Berkshire Hathaway Chicago & St. Petersburg
Principal, Silver Professionals
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