Top 5 Things to Know When Selling a Home
It doesn’t matter if this is your first time selling your home or you have sold homes before, there are things that you need to know before you can just list your home – at least if you are serious about selling it. Many people think that it is as simple as listing a home, but there is a method to the madness and a bit of preparation before you can successfully sell your home.
While selling your home can be rewarding and you will learn a lot, there can be potential pitfalls which you can avoid. You will face a decent amount of stress and anxiety so it pays to be prepared before you even start so that everything can run smoothly. Here are five things you might want to consider before listing your home:
Get a Pre Listing Inspection
Before you put your home on the market, you should have a professional home inspector over to look at your home. It is a good idea to go with an inspector that is a member of ASHI (American Society of Home Inspectors) or NIBI (National Institute of Building Inspectors) so you know you are getting a credible professional. Even if you didn’t purchase your home that long ago, there is a certain degree of expectancy that the home will be inspected by you, the current owner, even if your home is newer construction. It is likely that there will be a few issues found, but with a home inspection you can address any issues before you list which will make your home look better and be more attractive to potential buyers.
There are other inspections that you might want to consider as well, including:
- Radon
- Pest
- Chimney
- Septic
- Well Water
Potential buyers like when a home as passed all of these inspections and it makes the closing process easier and quicker for you, the seller.
Prepare for Paperwork
A Real Estate Professional, such as JEMS Homes, will need a lot of information about selling your home, and this means that you will need to complete certain paperwork. You want to know about the mechanics of your home, how it is running, and other important pieces of information so that you can disclose this to potential buyers. Your Real Estate Professional can then use that information to write compelling copy that will entice buyers to your home.
Some of the information you might want to include is:
- Roof age and warranty
- Furnace age and warranty
- Central air age and warranty
- Hot water heater age and manual
- Included appliance ages and manuals
- Dates of home improvement projects
- Certificates of compliance
- Outstanding mortgage balance
Now is the Best Time Sell
Every real estate market is different. Some places are in a seller’s market with houses selling fast and over the list price while others are in a buyer’s market where the choices are plentiful. Generally speaking, if you want to receive top dollar for your home, you should look to list your home in the spring and summer months. If you aren’t in a rush, you can call your Real Estate Professional, like JEMS Homes, in November or December to discuss the timing for selling your home. Sometimes you need to sell quickly like when you are relocating for a job or maybe to sell a property you inherited. No matter what time you chose to sell we can help you through the process quickly and easily.
Get Your Home Ready for Showings
If you’ve ever watched any show on HGTV, you’ll know that staging your home and making it more appealing for buyers is a huge help to selling your home for top dollar. Buyers could be distracted from how great your home is if they see clutter or dirt. It makes them wonder what else is happening with your home that they can’t see.
Preparing your home is easy: try to minimize clutter, eliminate pet odors, and try to keep the curb appeal up. Remember that first impressions do matter!
You Need a Great Real Estate Professional
The most important thing to do is ensure that you hire a fantastic licensed Real Estate Professional, such as JEMS Homes. Not all Real Estate Professionals are created equally and you need to find those who have a proven history of success. Make sure to keep your expectations high and know that some agents specialize in certain types of homes like luxury homes or ranches or properties located in specific neighborhoods.
Make sure to talk to your Real Estate Professional and get a feel for how he or she will treat you. Someone who answers your questions and works with you to provide you information and support to meet your real estate goals is the person you want to work with during this process.