 Getting your home sold in a reasonably quick period of time in today’s real estate market is no easy feat. There are hundreds of details to take care of; beginning with preparing your home for the marketplace, setting the correct price, marketing your home to reach the widest possible pool of buyers, negotiating the sales contract, taking care of home inspection items, arranging for other inspections and the appraisal, following up with the buyer’s agent and lender and making sure everything is in order for settlement day. On top of that, you also need to pack your belongings, prepare for a move to a new house (potentially out of state) and possibly prepare for a new job and new schools. With all of this happening in such a short amount of time, you need a Realtor® that is dedicated to selling your home and that will take care of the details and get your home sold quickly and for the most amount of money possible. I work very closely with my seller clients to price their homes according to market, to assist them with home preparation and staging prior to going on the market and aggressively marketing their properties while they are on the market.
In 2008, my seller’s averaged 21 days on the market compared with an average of over 100 days by other agents!
Pricing Your Property
Pricing your property is crucial to getting your home sold quickly and at a fair price. The first step is to have your Realtor® prepare a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) where your home’s features are compared to comparable properties, in your area, that have recently sold. In a market of changing prices, the CMA should focus on properties that have sold within the last three months to accurately reflect current market conditions. Many buyers tend to focus on homes that are new to the market so having the correct price from the start is a huge step in getting an offer and getting your home sold quickly. Home Preparation and Staging
 Properly preparing a home for the market is the second most crucial factor in getting your home sold. The goal of home staging is to create a warm and comfortable, clutter free environment that creates an emotional connection with a buyer. Home Staging is not decorating, fluffing, interior design or redesign! Home Staging is detailing, decluttering, depersonalizing and preparing a seller's home to give it a "model home" appearance so that the potential buyer can "see" themselves living in the home. Savvy home sellers understand that in order to get offers and top dollar for their homes in the least amount of time, they need to stage their properties. I work closely with all of my sellers to create a recommendation list of home improvements to maximize the appeal of each and every room and then I bring in our staging crew to transform your home into a showplace that buyers can’t resist! “Sellers have to take a steely-eyed look at the condition of their house. If there are defects, a buyer will zero in on those first”, said Tom Hanson... "Then sellers must either fix the problems or lower the price." Brendan Haggerty didn’t believe in the power of presentation when he listed his Silver Spring house this spring, but when the four-bedroom Cape Cod didn’t move for 2½ months, he was willing to switch to another real estate firm that emphasized the work of it’s on-staff staging crew… After a two-day repackaging by agent Hanson’s team, the Cape Cod in Woodmoor drew an offer at the open house… the buyer paid just under the listing price of $535,000. “It obviously worked,” Haggerty said. - The Washington Post, Saturday July 29, 2006
Marketing Your Property
Putting a sign in your yard, entering your listing in the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and holding open houses is just the tip of the iceberg in marketing a home in today’s real estate market. Buyers today usually begin searching for homes on the Internet. Even if a buyer has a buyer’s agent, they typically continue searching for homes online. With hundreds or thousands of competing properties advertised for sale, you want yours to stand out and be found. In order to attract as many buyers as possible, I have appealing interior pictures taken of all rooms, a custom write-up of your home’s features is created for both print and online forums and your listing is propagated to over 25 Internet search sites for maximum visibility! Getting an Offer
At some point, most sellers will receive an offer from a prospective buyer. No aspect of the home selling process is more complex or personal than the ensuing negotiations between the buyers’ and sellers’ agents. The value of using an experienced Realtor® during this part of the process cannot be underestimated. I will negotiate aggressively on your behalf and have the knowledge of local neighborhoods and home values and trends to get you the best possible price and terms. The Road to Settlement
Typically, it takes thirty days or longer from the time you accept an offer until you go to settlement. During this time the buyer will be performing a home inspection and perhaps other inspections as specified in the sales contract, an appraisal and title search will be performed and the buyer must be approved for a mortgage. Additional negotiations will typically be required after the home inspection and there invariably will be some items that need repairs as a result. I will recommend contractors, when necessary for home inspection items, keep in constant communication with the buyer’s agent, the buyer’s lender and the title company to ensure that all details are taken care of so all parties can enjoy a smooth settlement day! |
