Seller’s Guide
Step 1: Understand Why You’re Selling
Why are you selling your home, and what do you hope to achieve? Are you aiming to earn a certain profit to put towards a new home, or do you need to sell quickly to facilitate a move to a different city? Understanding your motivations will help guide your strategy. For instance, if a fast sale is your priority, you may need to price your home competitively. Be sure to communicate your goals to your Realtor®, who can adjust the selling price accordingly.
Step 2: Determine Selling Price
One of the most crucial steps in selling your home is determining the correct price. If you set a fair price from the outset, you’ll attract more interest from potential buyers and other agents. Overpricing may cause your home to sit on the market too long, while underpricing could mean you lose out on potential earnings. Working with an experienced real estate agent can help you find the right balance by comparing similar properties and considering the current market. A home appraisal may also be suggested to ensure accuracy.
Step 3: Start Preparations
If your home has always been in perfect condition, you’re ahead of the curve. But for most homeowners, some preparation is required before putting it on the market. This means decluttering, depersonalizing the space so potential buyers can picture themselves living there, making any necessary repairs, and doing a deep clean. Ensuring your home looks its best is key to attracting buyers.
Step 4: Develop a Marketing Strategy
I will craft a comprehensive marketing strategy tailored to your property. This includes listing your home and driving traffic to that listing using social media, agent-to-agent referrals, traditional marketing channels, and SEO. My goal is to generate as much interest as possible in the first few weeks by leveraging the right mix of marketing tactics.
Step 5: Evaluate Offers
Receiving an offer is an exciting milestone, but there’s still work to be done. We will thoroughly evaluate each offer, ensuring the buyer is pre-approved or prequalified by a lender. If an offer doesn’t meet your expectations, we can negotiate by making a counteroffer or adjusting terms such as covering closing costs, offering repairs, or negotiating the move-in date to bridge the gap.
Step 6: Accept An Offer
Once you’re satisfied with an offer, we will carefully review the contract to make sure everything is in order. The contract will include key details such as deposit amounts, down payments, financing terms, inspection and repair allowances, contingencies, the closing date, and a breakdown of costs and who covers them. After both parties agree, a final contract will be prepared for signatures.
Step 7: Get Ready To Close
Now that you’ve accepted an offer, you’re almost at the finish line. Both you and the buyer will have tasks to complete before closing. This may include a formal inspection, appraisal, or repairs that need to be addressed. I will coordinate all these tasks to ensure everything is handled properly, and each party is responsible for their portion of the costs. A few days before closing, we’ll confirm everything with the title or escrow company to ensure a smooth transaction. You’ll also need to finalize your moving arrangements so the buyer can take possession on closing day.
Step 8: Close
Closing day marks the final step in selling your home. On this day, you will meet with the buyer, their agent, and a closing agent (often from a title company or real estate lawyer) to sign the necessary paperwork, transfer ownership, and finalize the sale. During the closing process, you’ll review and sign several documents, including the deed, bill of sale, and any other legal paperwork required to transfer ownership.
At closing, all the financial aspects of the sale will be settled as well. This includes receiving the buyer’s payment, paying off any remaining mortgage balance, and covering any closing costs you’re responsible for. Once the documents are signed and the funds are disbursed, ownership of the property officially transfers to the buyer.
After the closing is complete, the buyer will receive the keys to the home, and you will walk away with the proceeds from the sale. Congratulations—you’ve successfully sold your home!