Selling your home: The best practice to follow

Before selling your home on the market there are guidelines to follow that ensure your property is sold for the best price and in the quickest time. Certain steps need to be implemented, whilst others need to be avoided at all costs to receive the most returns out of your property. 

Steps to implement: 

Find the right price

The first thing you should determine is your home’s value. This can be done by researching the property market of houses similar to yours in terms of zip code, square footage and ocean distance (if applicable). Your home might be worth so much more (or less) than you originally thought so make sure you are selling it at a competitive price. It is important to make sure you don’t set a price too high because if it doesn’t sell then you might have to reduce its price on the market and this may leave buyers thinking that there is something wrong with the property. 

Take advantage of a realtor

It is estimated that almost 90% of sellers use a realtor and the reasons are far reaching. Firstly, the realtor will assist you in setting your home at the right price and then attract buyers to it. They are also privy to current information regarding the recent sales of homes similar to yours and competing listings in your area. Besides the latest information, a realtor will market your home aggressively by implementing staging techniques to present it appealingly and create professional quality photography. In addition, the realtor will show your home to potential buyers who all then get vetted. This allows you to only deal with serious candidates. Finally, once you’ve found the ideal buyer, the realtor will negotiate counter offers and track the paperwork.

Make your home look appealing on the inside and out 

Presentation is everything, so make sure you present your home in the best way you can. Inspect your home and make a list of all the necessary repairs that need to be undertaken. If need be call an inspector to get a detailed list of repairs and damages that need to be rectified before you show off your home to the public. Once the repairs are adequately taken care of move on to the next task: Cleaning and decluttering. It has been proven that clutter devalues your home remarkably and provides an overall negative appearance, this will deter potential buyers from investing in your home or they might not give you the price you initially wanted. 

Steps to avoid

Warehouse worries

Ensure that you do not let moving interrupt the selling of your home by making it look like a warehouse when you are packing up all your belongings in boxes. The best technique to implement is moving the boxes and packing materials into a garage or shed and if you have the budget- rent a storage facility. 

Needless upgrades

It is advisable to avoid upgrading your home unnecessarily unless it is solid repairs like bad plumbing or broken doors. However, spending money on unwarranted upgrades such as new carpets or curtains is a waste of money because your home buyer might replace or change it right after they purchase the house. Rather save the money and inject it into your new home.

Test driving your home on the market

Do not place your home on the market before making the necessary repairs and clean-ups to the inside and outside of your home. If you do, it might be the deciding factor on whether or not it gets sold at the price you need. In the first three months of listing your home it will receive the most attention, make sure this attention is only positive. 

Displaying items you plan on keeping

When your home is on show to the public make sure to put away furniture and appliances that you will be taking with you. Sometimes, these items remaining on display can serve to foil the deal between you and a potential buyer especially if you tell them they can’t have it.