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At RE/MAX, we believe that the best way to sell
your house is with the assistance of a real estate professional
but
know that
some
homeowners prefer to handle their own sales. Please remember
as you navigate through the process of selling your home alone,
that
I am here ready to help.
Can You Sell Your House Yourself?
Right now, over 10% of American homeowners handle their own sales.
But in order to join the ranks of the successful ones, you need
to realistically assess what's involved. The routine parts of
the job involve pricing your house accurately, determining whether
or not a buyer is qualified, creating and buying your own advertising,
familiarizing yourself with enough basic real estate regulations
to understand (and possibly even prepare) a real estate contract,
and coordinating the details of a closing. The greatest downside
is the demand on your time. Be careful and thorough. Mistakes
may cost you the money you're trying to save.
| According to the National Association of Realtors, only 14
percent of the homes sold in the United States were successfully
sold by the owners. The agent-assisted median sales price was
$175,000 while the FSBO median was only $145,000. |
Working With An Agent
The best reason for working
with a real estate agent is the enormous amount of information
I have
at my
disposal.
As a professional
I know about market trends, houses in your neighborhood, and the
people most likely to buy there. I also know how to reach the
largest number of people who may be interested in your house. I
am trained in areas like screening potential buyers and negotiating
with them.
Finally, I am always "on-call," and willing to do
the things most of us hate: working on the weekends, answering
the phone at all hours, and always being polite.
Set a Realistic Price
Today's residential real estate market is no place to look for
easy profit. The fact is, prices have generally leveled off from
their peak during the 1980's. That's not to say you can't get
what your house is worth. You just have to be realistic about
its value, and price it accordingly. A good place to start is
by determining the fair market value.
How to Determine Your Asking Price
I would suggest asking prices based on a variety
of information you may not have at your disposal, including
recent listing and selling prices of houses in your neighborhood.
If
you're not completely confident in my suggestions, you may
want to order an appraisal. Next, establish clear priorities.
If you had to choose, are you more concerned with selling quickly,
or getting the most money possible? What would you pay for
the house if you were the buyer? Someone else — a neighbor,
friend or relative — may point out advantages or disadvantages
about your house that you hadn't thought about. Third-party
views will help you start thinking of your house as a commodity,
with
positive and negative selling points. Then you should decide
on a price that you feel is competitive and consistent with
what other houses in your area have sold for.
Fix Your House Up Before it Goes on the Market
Unless your house is nearly new, chances are you'll want to do
some work to get it ready to market. The type and amount of
work depends largely on the price you're asking, the time you
have
to sell, and of course, the present condition of the house.
If you're in a hurry to sell, do the "little things" that
make your house look better from the outside and show better
inside.
Create "Curb Appeal"
"Curb appeal" is the common real estate term for everything
prospective buyers can see from the street that might make them
want to turn in and take a look. Improving curb appeal is critical
to generating traffic. While it does take time, it needn't be
difficult or expensive, provided you keep two key words in mind:
neat and
neutral.
Neatness sells.
New paint, an immaculate lawn, picture-perfect
shrubbery, a newly sealed driveway, potted plants at the front
door — put them all together, and drive-by shoppers will
probably want to see the rest of the house. Hand-in-hand with
neatness is neutrality. If you're going to repaint, stick to
light, neutral
colors. Keep the yard free of gardening tools and the kids' toys.
Remember, when a family looks at a house, they're trying to paint
a picture of what it would be like as their home.
Make Sure Your House Shows at its Best
First, make your house look as clean and spacious as possible.
Remember, people may look behind your doors — closet
and crawl space doors as well as those to the bedrooms and
bathrooms.
So get rid of all the clutter; have that garage sale and haul
away the leftovers.
After you've cleaned, try to correct any cosmetic flaws you've
noticed. Paint rooms that need it. Regrout tile walls and floors.
Remove or replace any worn-out carpets. Replace dated faucets,
light fixtures, and the handles and knobs on your kitchen drawers
and cabinets.
Finally, as with the outside of your house, try to make it easy
for prospective buyers to imagine your house as their home. Clear
as much from your walls, shelves, and countertops as you can. Give
your prospects plenty of room to dream.
List Your House With RE/MAX Suburban Northwest
RE/MAX offers many products and services that
may help you sell your house faster and at a better price. Request
a CMA today.
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