If you plan to sell your house in 2007, in most communities the peak sales months are April, May, June and July. The reason is the largest number of prospective buyers are in the market during this time of the year. That means now is the time to get your home ready for sale. If you want to earn top dollar, careful preparation and planning are essential. The four key steps are:
1. GET YOUR HOME INTO "MODEL HOME" CONDITION.
The best way to get your house ready for sale is to take a critical look at it. Pretend you are a critical buyer. Ask yourself, "Would I buy this home?" If your honest answer is "no," then do your best to correct its deficiencies. Getting your home into "model home" condition doesn’t mean making major renovations, such as installing a new kitchen or new bathrooms. That is usually a waste of money because buyers might not like your tastes.
Instead, cleaning, repairing and painting are all that is usually needed. Inexpensive cosmetic improvements usually pay off handsomely.Even if your home really doesn’t need it, fresh paint is the most profitable improvement you can make. It gives that "new feeling" to even old houses. For every $1 spent painting the interior and exterior, the return in the form of a higher sales price is often 10 times its cost. Other profitable improvements that usually return more than their modest costs include new light fixtures, new floor coverings (carpets, kitchen and bathroom tile or vinyl, refinishing wood floors, etc.) and a landscaping spruce-up with colorful flowering plants.
Pretend you are a photographer from one of the home magazines, such as House Beautiful or Sunset. Aim to make your house worthy of a low-cost home makeover feature article.
2. HAVE YOUR HOME PROFESSIONALLY INSPECTED.
Another alternative is to repair or replace the deficient item, such as a bad furnace, but ask the supplier to delay payment until the sale closes. Most suppliers are eager to make sales and will readily agree to delayed payment without extra cost.
The reason a pre-listing professional inspection is so vital is that most of today’s savvy buyers insist on these inspections. By having your own pre-listing inspection, you will already be aware of any serious drawbacks. In addition, wise home sellers have customary local inspections such as for termites, energy efficiency, radon and building code compliance. Such inspections avoid later surprises. Smart sellers have repairs made before putting their home on the market, thus thwarting buyer objections.3. ESTIMATE YOUR HOME’S MARKET VALUE.
Home sales prices are based on the recent sales (not asking) prices of nearby similar houses within the last three months. A good place to start is on the Internet to determine your home’s approximate market value. For a FREE, no obligation, current market analysis of your home, log onto www.forhomesellers-nonSmartZip.com, fill out the form and a current market analysis of your home will be emailed directly to your inbox.
To find out the asking prices of similar homes listed for sale in your community, the best source is www.forhomeinfo.com. This Web site searches homes directly from the Multiple Listing Service. It is also FREE to sign up for and homes will be emailed directly to your inbox that meet your specific criteria. It will give you a good idea of comparable nearby houses now listed for sale. Please remember these are asking price, not sales prices. You can also obtain a home value analysis by email by logging onto www.forhomesellers-nonSmartZip.com. Here, you simply enter in the information pertaining to your home and within about 24 to 48 hours you will receive this analysis by email.
4. INTERVIEWING A REAL ESTATE AGENT.
1. Ask how long the agent has been in the business.
2. How many homes they list and sell annually? (more is good).
3. What kind of marketing do they provide? (extensive Internet is good).
4. Get at least 3 references.
6. How long is the listing period?
7. How long do they follow up on showings?
8. What systems do they have for regular communication?
9. Are they a single agent or do they have a team? Teams are typically better.
Never, never choose an agent solely based on the fee they charge or on a potentially inflated sales price. Follow these simple suggestions and you should maximize on your homes sale price and have a great selling experience.
