How To Get Your House In Shape For The Market If you have decided to sell your house, you need to think about how you can get top dollar for the sale. You have to decide whether you want to list with an agent or if you prefer to sell it on your own, bypassing the sales commission. You should find out about pricing information in your neighborhood, how to stage your house effectively, and how you should approach negotiating for the final price. This article will give you some pointers about these areas.
You may have seen homes on the market that are “for sale by owner”. This means the owner is not using an agent to negotiate on his behalf. The owner is responsible for every aspect of the sale, and he takes all legal responsibility for it.
When you list with an agent, you are assigning that responsibility to him, in return of paying him a commission. The advantage is that you do not have to worry about the details. Your agent has a lot more experience marketing a home in its best light and getting top dollar for it. So, you are paying for his expertise. Before you list with an agent, be very clear about what services he will provide. Look at the listing agreement and ask the agent to clarify anything that you do not understand.
In order to price your home properly, you should look at the recent sales history of the homes in your neighborhood. This information is publicly available. Look at the size of the homes and the amenities included. You will get an idea of the average price. This will give you an idea of how much you should offer your house for. You do not want to price it too high to discourage potential buyers, yet you do not want to price it too low either.
You will need to stage your home properly for show. Start to pack away most of your personal belongings that you do not use often. Each room should look as generic as possible because you want your buyer to envision his family in it. Clean the house thoroughly and leave no corner undusted. Imagine each room of your house to be a furniture showroom. Each room should look attractive and inviting.
If you have minor repairs to fix, fix them right away. Something like a broken is a real negative to the buyer’s eye, but is can be inexpensively replaced by you. Small repairs make a big difference. If a repair is going to cost a lot of money, and you don’t think that it would worth the investment, then just let it go, but you will have to disclose it in your sales contract.
Decide ahead of time how low you are willing to go in your price. This will come into play when negotiation starts. You will mostly not get your initial asking price, unless you are selling in a hot seller’s market.
Think about these points as you are planning for the sale of your house. Using good strategies will net you top dollar in your sale
