Are you getting ready to sell your home? Prepare yourself with ample research time before you begin the process. This can be a complicated experience without the right preparation. Avoid these eight home-selling mistakes to get the most money for your home in the shortest amount of time.
Waiting for the “Right Time” to Sell
Many people will wait until the spring season to sell their house. While it may be true that many people purchase their homes in the springtime, many families do buy homes all year long. There is no need to wait if the time is right for you.
Choosing the Wrong Real Estate Agent
If you choose to sell your house with a real estate agent, make sure that they are a reputable agent and/or are with a reputable company. Do not just choose an agent because they are a family friend or some coworker’s wife. Do your research on real estate agents and agencies before choosing the one that will help you sell your home.
Selling It Yourself Without Doing Your Homework
If you choose to sell your home without the help of an agent, do your homework on the process. Are you willing and able to put in the time, effort, and resources required for the marketing, viewings and paperwork involved?
Poor Marketing
We all know to put the “For Sale” sign in the front yard, but there is more to marketing than that. There are many newspapers and magazines with real estate listings, as well as websites that can include a description of the amenities, pictures, and even video tours of the rooms and yards.
Not Making Necessary Improvements
This seems pretty obvious to most of us, but it is important to fix major issues such as leaky pipes, badly stained carpeting, or bent and twisted window blinds. Fix the major issues with the house before you put it on the market.
Doing Too Many Improvements
As much as not making improvements hurts your chance of selling your house, so does over-improving. Avoid going out of your way to replace everything that is not brand new in the house. Sometimes people make so many home improvements before putting their house on the market that it ends up too far out of the price range for their neighborhood.
Setting the Price Too High
We all want to make as much money as we can selling our home, but an unreasonably high asking price will scare off many potential buyers. Although buyers do expect to negotiate with the seller, if the asking price is too high, they may just skip the house altogether.
Setting the Price Too Low
A final mistake in selling your home is to set the price too low. Again, while everyone realizes that you will be negotiating for an agreed-upon price at the end, starting off low is a bad way to start the negotiating process. You will lose money no matter how well you negotiate.
