Deciding to sell is the first step in a long line of decisions when you’re a homeowner. Selling is expensive, time-consuming, and stressful, and if you’re aware of issues with the property or find yourself under time or financial constraints, the stress level can be immense. If you’re a Columbus homeowner and want to learn more about making the selling process easier on yourself, let us guide you through the selling process with these three great tips. Here’s a more in-depth process in regards to the listing process in Central Ohio.
Staging
When you’re prepping to sell, it helps to put yourself into the buyer’s mindset and that mindset is that buyers lack the imagination to see past clutter and superficial aesthetics. One way Columbus homeowners make the selling process easier is by understanding this theory behind staging. You’ll want to clear away personal items, keep storage spaces only half full during the listing, and remove more oversized furniture to make the space appear more open. Once you step back and imagine how your home appears to potential buyers, it’s important that you get good pictures to be able to market your property. Pay $200 for professionally done pictures and maybe a couple drone shots. It’s worth it because the pictures will show up on popular home buying sites like Zillow, Redfin, or Realtor.com. Most real estate agent have this included in their pricing (us included) and we can guide you through the process of showing your house. Alternatively, since we buy houses too, you can skip this stuff and sell to an investor like us because we make money by buying crappy houses that need all times or work then figuring out to sell them to buyers who are looking for turn-key homes. Reach out to figure out what’s in your best interest.
Organize
Another way Columbus homeowners make the selling process easier is by gathering all pertinent paperwork showing the home’s history and any repairs, ensuring your title is clear, and hiring a professional inspector. Hence, you know the condition of your home with your eyes wide open to the expenses you’re facing as you go into the selling process and avoid closing delays or even losing the sale. There are mixed feelings in the real estate agent community regarding getting an inspection prior to selling because there are ALWAYS problems with a home and it’s the home inspectors job to find them, so no matter how much renovating you do and trying to mitigate the issues found during a inspection report by a buyer, they’re going to find something and make requests for you to fix them. That being said, getting a pre-inspection report gives you a heads-up on what stuff could be an issue, and you will have the time to be able to make a decision as to whether or not you want to fix it. Alternatively, if the only inspection that is done is performed by the buyers, whatever comes up on it is going to come as a surprise and you literally have only a couple days to figure out what to do – which is nerve-racking. So to summarize, prepare yourself for the listing process by organizing all your documents, making sure that any potential deal breakers for buyers have been dealt with which might mean getting a pre-inspection report, get pricing from contractors, or being prepared to deal with any “clouds” on the title.
Pricing
One of the most influential things Columbus homeowners can do to make the selling process easier on themselves is to set a realistic asking price and remain open to negotiations. This is paramount. Most homeowners can’t accurately determine how much their home is worth, and if they have number, it’s usually way higher than a buyer would pay. To get an idea how much your home is really worth, ask yourself the following questions:
- what homes in my area/neighborhood/street have sold within the last 90 days or active? The closer to your home in distance, condition, and features, the better.
- how long were those homes on the market before selling?
- how do those homes compare to my house in condition and amenities?
Tech-savvy buyers scroll through listings at lightning speed and have a good feel for the amount of house they can get with their money, and when a home is overpriced or underpriced, most buyers see only trouble ahead and so avoid looking further at the listing. Be overly-conservative in your estimates – especially with how quickly the real estate market is changing. If you have any questions, professional buyers and real estate agents like Chris Jones at CMJones Homes can help with all stages of the selling process by either offering cash for your home or helping your sell it for best price on the market.