The other day a TV program was on where a family was getting ready to sell their home; they made it look so easy! Chuckling to myself, I thought it might be good idea to run through eight key topics to review prior to selling your home.
1) Realtor
I've noticed that sometimes people don’t put much thought into who their realtor might be, or the agency they are with. However, this could be the deciding factor on if your house sells in one week or one year. What are the value added services they can have readily available should the need arise? Have you noticed what company listed the houses in your neighborhood that have been selling quickly?
2) Curb Appeal
Behind finding a great real estate agent, this is probably the second most important thing on your list. By only doing a few minor things, you can transport your outdated home to a current vision of beauty. Trimming bushes, cutting your grass, planting (and watering) flowers will bring color and conformity to the first thing people see.
3) Repair
Go through your home and take a look at all the little repairs that you have been putting off. The less a potential buyer feels they have to do once they move in, the quicker the home will sell. A leaking faucet, running toilet, broken handle, hole repair are all little things that could turn a buyer off from your home. The cost of hiring a handyman for the day to take care of your list could potentially save you more by moving your house quicker.
4) Water Heater, A/C, Heat
These are three major items that a buyer is going to make sure are operational. You are better off doing tuneups and minor repairs ahead of time. If a potential buyer is coming into a home where they are going to have to repair a major item, most don’t even want to bother and may request complete replacement or a huge credit on the purchase. Make sure you don’t give the buyer a reason for you to lose money on the sale.
5) Odors
Any odor from cigarette to pets, cooking or musty can immediately turn a buyer off just by opening the door. Using over the counter products or candles only masks or mixes smells to make the matter worse. Pur360 is a leading company in the Chicagoland area that can actually remove these smells from your home, creating a clean, inviting, positive smelling experience for the buyer.
6) Radon
Radon is a gas that moves from the soil into a home. If trapped, over time exposure can lead to lung cancer. Any house, of any age can have elevated levels, but like with mold, a simple test can determine the levels. Again, by answering this question up front, you will be able to quickly and confidently sell your home without concern.
7) Mold
It seems today this is one of the major hold-ups in selling a home. Most times, it is discovered in the last steps of the selling process and could potentially end the sale. A quick home mold test at the beginning can determine if there is mold in your home. Be sure the company is able to provide you with a certified report that you can give to any potential buyer. In addition, if there is mold, the time you spend up front to remediate the problem, the less of a delay on the backend or money you will have to credit to the buyer.
8) Staging
I can’t say enough how important it is to stage a house for success. A major benefit to this service is a neutral party can go through and identify items that will impress or turn a potential buyer away. They would then work with the homeowner to come up with a plan to prepare the home for selling. Do this before putting the home on the market, as to opposed to after it has been on the market for a while, and you will surely reduce your sell time.
After you complete these crucial eight steps before selling your home, it will be just as easy “as seen on TV” for you to sell your home!
