Selling your house is not as easy as It looks like – there is a lot of effort at the backend that is put in order to ensure an easy and successful home sale.
While there is no doubt that the real estate market is a very lucrative and beneficial field, it is still not a genie out of the lamp that everything will be done smoothly and within seconds. Like every field, the real estate industry requires effort too in order to reap the fruit.
Read below to find tips on how you can sell your house ASAP and how to list your home;
Listing Your Home
Most people still rely on listing the house the traditional way that is on MLS and go about it in the way that has been used for ages now. Here’s how to do it:
Hire a Listing Agent
It is good to hire a listing agent to list your house to the MLS because listing on the MLS can be very technical. Since you will list the house on a formal platform, you have to vary the technicalities, formalities and legalities.
Make sure to inquire about each agent’s commission rates that you can learn more about by following this link. While most brokers charge between four and seven per cent, fees aren’t fixed in stone, and you may always bargain. Consider a listing agent’s fee in relation to other aspects such as personal availability and selling philosophy. It takes a lot of time and effort to get the greatest potential result from a sale, and while the finest agents are unlikely to be inexpensive, they should give comparable value.
Price it Correctly
When it comes to a real estate listing, choosing the wrong pricing is one of the most common blunders. Many potential purchasers will pass on an expensive home because it is out of their price range. If you price your house too cheap, on the other hand, you may sell it quickly but lose out on possible earnings. Take time to consider your listing price to avoid these extremes while selling your house.
To obtain a sense of current market prices, look at similar sales in your area. You can do that more effectively by performing a Comparative Market Analysis. Work with a real estate agent to choose a listing price that would appeal to potential investors while allowing additional discussion.
Fix Up the Inside of the Home
Unless you want to sell your property “as-is” (i.e., at a steep discount), you should attempt to enhance it before putting it on the market. It may be as simple as cleaning and decluttering your home. Adding a coat of paint, fixing damaged appliances, or replacing the flooring or roof are all examples of home improvements you may make before putting your house on the market. Before taking photographs for your ad, be sure you do these repairs and renovations.
Don’t forget to depersonalize the space by storing personal items like photographs, etc. Additionally, you should get rid of any extra furniture to make your house look larger. These suggestions for selling a house can help you.
Home Staging
Real estate brokers frequently advise sellers to stage their houses. That simply involves removing extra furniture, personal possessions, and unattractive objects from the house while on the market and rearranging rooms for maximum flow and function. If you’re selling a luxury property in a sluggish market, hiring a professional stager might help you stand out. According to HomeAdvisor, professional home staging costs approximately $1,200 on average nationwide, although the range may be as low as $520 and as high as $2,000.
Painting the Kitchen
Kitchen is amongst the main areas in the house; and people mostly depend a large portion of their decision on the condition of the kitchen. A pro-tip to sell your house fast is that paint the kitchen. We are talking about the simple, and plain kitchen paint for example with a neutral colour. Once you refresh the paint of the kitchen, it will start blooming. You can do the same with the kitchen cabinets!
Maximize the Light
Maximizing the light in the house is a great option! And if you have yellow lights then that’s cherry on top. Ensure that whenever someone comes for a home tour and if you are taking pictures the light is spot on. Another tip is, during winters make sure to light up yellow lights, and open windows for sunlight. And during summers, light up white bulbs because they give a cooler look.
Keep the Pets Away
We know you might be thinking that having a puppy, or a cat around would melt the buyer’s heart. However, that is far from the truth. The buyers are instead going to be worried about fur-fall of these cuddle balls and the germs there might be! So try to keep your pets away!
Know the Seller Closing Costs
Closing fees are incurred by both the buyer and the seller. The home seller normally pays the real estate agent’s commission, usually approximately 5% to 6% of the home’s sale price. Other fees that are frequently paid by the seller involve:
- Government transfer tax
- Recording fees
- Outstanding liens
Furthermore, the seller will pay any credits for repairs or closing fees that the buyer has negotiated to be paid at closing. At the closing table, your real estate agent or closing agent should give you a detailed breakdown of the expenditures you’ll be accountable for. While the buyer generally pays the majority of closing expenses, which range from 2% to 4% of the sales price, be aware that you may be responsible for some fees as well.
Weigh the Tax Implications
The good news is that many house sellers will not have to pay taxes on their gains on the sale of their primary residence. You won’t have to pay taxes on any profit up to $250,000 if you’ve owned and lived in your house for at least two of the preceding five years before selling it. The amount you may deduct from taxes as a married couple rises to $500,000.
If your profit from the house sale is more than $250,000 ($500,000 for couples), you must declare it to the IRS as a capital gain on your tax return.
Closing On The Offer
Once everything is done, now will be the time to go for closing. This is when you will hand over the homeownership to the buyer, and you will get the money after signing the home sale contract!
Most people opt for traditional ways of a home sale; however, recently, cash home buying has started to gain popularity. Read below to find:
Cash Home Buying
Cash home buying can be very beneficial. It is when an investor has funds readily available in the form of hard cash. This is a great way to sell your house fast if you want to since the buyer doesn’t have to rely on mortgages or loans to buy the house from you, which prevents delays. People rely on mortgage approval and loans; however, that is not the case with a cash home sale.
Keep reading to find a few more reasons why you should consider a cash home sale:
- Fast Closing
Another difference between traditional and cash sales? From start to end, cash sales take less time to complete. The mortgage loan procedure is generally to blame once again.
The majority of transactions need mortgage underwriting. This time-consuming procedure might take anywhere from 30 to 60 days, and a lot can happen in that time. The mortgage lender may refuse to grant a loan if the buyer’s financial condition changes between pre-approval and loan closing, and the deal may fall apart. In fact, when it comes to contingent offers to fall through, financial issues are the most common cause.
A cash transaction, on the other hand, is not subject to mortgage underwriting. As a result, property sellers can lower their chance of a deal falling through while also saving time throughout the sale process.
- Less Risky
Cash offers are usually more powerful than those made using regular finance. If we compare traditional home buying with cash home buying, cash home buying is much less risky. When faced with many alternatives, it’s only natural for sellers to choose the buyer that poses the least danger. The cash buyer is usually the case. Even if the cash offer is smaller, many property sellers prefer a cash offer over one that will be financed with a mortgage.
The seller is aware that the sale will conclude sooner, implying that they will be paid sooner when the finance is removed from the equation, the likelihood of the deal falling through decreases.
- Reduce Stress
The typical method of selling a home is stressful. You must clean, stage, fix, and enhance your home. You’ll need to locate a good agent, deal with the appraisal and inspection, and maintain your house clean for showings and open houses. Not to mention the million and one other things to be concerned about, such as if the buyer would back out or lose finance. How long do you think it’ll take to sell?
While there are a variety of reasons why you might want (or need) to sell quickly, sometimes you simply don’t want the process to drag on. In any case, a speedy home sale alleviates some of the stress that comes with selling a house.
- Save on Repairs
In a traditional house sale, the inspection highlights any repairs that are required. In most situations, the house seller must either pay for repair or reduce the home’s asking price.
- Skip the Marketing and Showings
Looking for potential buyers is time-consuming and costly, and presenting your house in the best light is time-consuming and costly.
Consider open houses and (particularly) showings; it’s tough to keep your property in walk-through condition at all times. Do you have a full-time job, children, or pets? Maintaining a tidy environment may appear to be a near-impossible task!
You don’t have to promote or display your home if you sell it for cash.
