“How to sell my house fast” and “How to sell my house at the best cost” are two of the most common questions people ask when trying to sell their homes. And the reason why is easy to understand: Selling your house is no easy task! A lot of people deal with dubious buyers, complicated processes, and a lot of paperwork.
Fortunately, you have several options! And you wouldn’t believe how fast and even easily you can get real cash in your hands for your house.
So, before you can check your options, you want to make sure your house is ready for the market.
How To Get My House Ready To Sell?
Many people think cleaning and decluttering is the most stressful part when they ask themselves how to sell their house fast.
But in our years in the business, we found out what stresses most of our customers out is an entirely different thing:
Their mindset.
Many of them forget they are making a business transaction, and let their emotions come into play. That is never a good idea when making business.
So, one of the first things we want to share with you is this: Remember to keep your emotions in check during the process.
That being said, let’s answer the most common questions people ask about how to get your house ready to sell.
When Should I Start Decluttering?
Right away.
Decluttering is one of the most important parts of selling your house because of one simple reason. Buyers love space.
The more space they see, the higher your possibilities to hook them.
While word about your business spread, buyers may take a while to appear.
But in some sense, as soon as you decide you want to sell your house, you’re on the clock (so to speak). You never know if a good buyer is waiting around the corner. So the sooner your house gets ready to show, the better.
Should I Get A Home Inspection?
What is a Home Inspection?
Is the process where the buyer typically hires a professional to perform a series of visual observations and take notes. The inspector will check if your house is in accordance with the state’s standards. They will also identify any potential health or safety threat.
Nobody can force you to get a home inspection, but when talking about selling your house, it could be one of the best investments you make.
The reason is simple: When we buy something, we all want to know what’s “under the hood”.
A pre-sale home inspection not only can alleviate your buyer’s concerns but also let them know you have nothing to hide.
Making Repairs, Before Or After The Inspection?
You may be thinking to start making repairs to get ready for your home inspection. But you shouldn’t! Here’s a little tip that can save you thousands of dollars in repairs:
People that make repairs before their home inspection, end up paying two or even three times more.
Why?
Because they start fixing a lot of things they think may be wrong, but the inspector won’t even look at. And then, the inspector will give them a list of things to repair, that the owner could have never thought of!
So, just make sure the inspector has access to water, electricity, and gas, and let them do their job.
“But wait for a second! If my report shows some items need to be fixed, won’t that affect my sales opportunities?”
Not at all! Buyers and their realtors are well aware of this, and also, your real estate agent can use this report to show how every item on the list has been properly repaired while showing the house.
What Repairs Should I Do And Which Ones Should I Avoid?
We just saw it’s more convenient to wait until you make a home inspection. But let’s not jump into hardware mode just yet!
An experienced real estate agent can help you decide which items are worth fixing and which ones are not worth fixing
As we said before, you don’t have to do the pre-sale inspection, but it gives you big advantages:
● It shows your buyer you mean business and have nothing to hide.
● Helps your buyer relax and feel more confident in submitting an offer.
● Reduces the possibilities your buyer backs off.
Now that you know everything you need to sell your house, let us show you the best 3 options to do it fast.
Option #1 Sell To A Cash Buying Company
Selling to a cash buying company is the best option in cost but also in benefits. Besides this is the fastest way to get cash in your hands as a result of selling your house. Another big benefit is that this is a guaranteed sale. No need to look for customers, agents, or Facebook ads.
For years, this has been the go-to option for families that face a financial struggle, since it helps them get their house sold at a good price with no agent fees.
This is a highly effective option for:
● Sellers who can’t sell or whose listings have expired
● Sellers who are divorcing
● Sellers in bankruptcy
● Homes in probate
● Homes in foreclosure
● Sellers whose employers have transferred them
● Owners who are evicting tenants
● Vacant homes
● Trashed or damaged homes
Besides that, there are some other benefits you get when selling to a cash buyer:
The Fastest Way To Get Cash For Your House
Unlike any other methods, if you sell your house to a cash buyer, you can get cash in as soon as 7 days. This works great because they are your buyer, you don’t have to wait until a buyer appears, you don’t have to stress about an agent fee or wait for a long time to get your money after the house is sold.
No Hidden Or Additional Fees
You get to know how much you will get for your house, with no more fees. Once you agree on an offer the real sum can be in your hands within a week.
So, if you want to save yourself from stress, and forget about house staggers, real estate agents fees, or getting into an auction, cash buyers should be your option to go.
Option #2 Real Estate Agents
We, regular people, don’t know the intricacies of legal minutia. And you have to take into count there are going to be hundreds of papers around selling your house. Many of those documents will need to be read, agreed upon, and signed by someone.
But we know you may have some relevant questions.
Is it as simple as calling someone and then letting them take it from there? How do I find the right real estate agent for me?
Well, it’s not that easy. It depends on how quickly you need money for your home. How much time can you invest in getting your house ready and the amount you want to get for your business. And let’s not forget your agents’ commission.
Hiring a real estate agent can be the best way to put your house on the business or the worst. Before you choose, make sure you understand all your options, as the pros and cons of each one.
So, if you decide this is the option there are a lot of resources you can use to find the right candidate.
Take your time looking at the best options near you and remember a couple of things:
Beware Of Agency Fees
Some real estate agents charge huge amounts for their services. That means they can take as much as 5-6% of your property value.
Time To Sell Your House
While hiring an agent may be faster than selling your house on your own, it’s still far away from being the best option. And if you are in a hurry for cash (as many people who sell their houses are), the waiting can become frustrating.
Extra Costs
Remember that after your realtor fee, you still have to pay for repairs, cleaning, and decluttering. So it will work the best if you think of your agent as another cost of selling your house.
Option 3# For Sale By Owner (Fsbo)
Maybe you don’t want to have anything to do with agent fees, auctions, or fine prints. That’s ok. You always can opt to sell your house FSBO. It may seem less expensive and maybe even less restrictive. However, if you want to try this way, prepare yourself to dive into an unending sea of paperwork.
How Does Fsbo Work?
FSBO means you will try to sell your house by your means, without an agent or an auction company, from start to finish.
Commissions
One of the clear benefits of this option is to avoid agency fees which can come up to 6% of your house value. Making this one the “less expensive” options, if you are willing to be patient and keep track of every record and paper.
Total Control Of Your Listing
When you decide to try FSBO, you can decide about everything. From your asking price to the transaction details. You can decide which deal you take and no one will charge you extra for anything. It is your hose, your listing and you decide.
Remember this also puts the pressure of showing the house on your shoulders. This means you have to take some time to set up appointments, but also means you’ll never get caught off guard by any last-minute appointment set up by your agent.
Make Your House Look Appealing
If you are going to sell your house on your own, you have to make sure your house looks like a warm, cozy, and appealing place to any potential buyer.
Here a quick list you can use to make sure your house can catch your buyer’s eye.
● Trim and sweep
Take a good look at the outside of your house. Trim all ugly branches, mow the lawn, get rid of any trinkets in the front and backyard.
● Clear walkways and paths
We all have that weird piece of furniture that works wonders but nobody likes it. Now get rid of it. If it is in the middle of a walkway or blocking an entrance or just there looking ugly, you need to remove it.
● Clean windows and doorknobs
This is maybe the most underestimated advice. Nobody believes cleaning the windows and knobs can make that much difference until they see it! Chances are when you are done, you won’t even want to sell the house anymore.
● Clean spider webs and debris out
Remember what we said about making your house look cozy? Well, unless it’s Halloween, spider webs and debris are not the best way to achieve that. Porches, attics, and basements.
● Check little details
Replace broken lights or mailboxes. Also, take the chance to look for broken windows, and missing roof tiles.
● Paint the front door
Your front door will give the first impression of your house to any potential buyer. Make them feel they are entering a brand new house by making your front door looking as good as new.
Stage Your Property
One of the challenges you will encounter when trying to sell your house is finding the right buyer. For almost any option you choose to sell your house, you will probably need a written listing and pictures of your house.
Writing A Compelling Listing
Remember people who look at your listing are looking for a new place to call home. Talk to them about the things you enjoyed the most in your house, and let them know all the little details.
Put yourself in their place. If you were looking for a new home, what would you want to know about the house?
Maybe something like
● How many rooms are there?
● What’s the footprint of the house?
● How’s the neighborhood?
● How high is the ceiling?
● Is there a nice kitchen?
● A huge basement?
● Anything that can be distinctive from your house?
How To Take Photos To Sell Your House?
Taking amazing house photos is not as easy as it seems! But there are some little tricks you can use to take good enough pictures.
● Work with sunlight
Take all your exterior pictures during the day. Always try to take pictures with the sun behind you to avoid undesired flashes.
● Interiors
Try to take natural light sources in all your inside photos. Turn on the lights so your interior doesn’t look dark
● Avoid vertical photos
It may work on Tik-Tok, but house buyers prefer to see wide spaces. Help them by taking horizontal pictures of your house.
Staging your house
If you think all the listing and photography parts are too complicated, you can hire a house stagger and let them do all the work. Just google “Home Staging Services Near me”, and let someone else take that bullet for you.
Take a look at this video from Melanie Loves Tampa Bay so you get a better picture.
Before You Decide
There are a couple of things you should keep in mind if you want to sell your house by yourself.
● Lower sale price
If you are not related at all to real estate, chances are you end up getting less money for your house.
● Paperwork means time, and time is money
The number of documents and papers you will have to manage is mind-blowing. If you think you are not ready to keep track of every single period and colon, this option may not be the best one for you.
● Like getting a second, unpaid job
Let’s get real. Selling your house IS A JOB. So, if you want to sell it on your own, get ready to work a double shift during the months it takes to sell.
● You may end up paying commission anyway
Maybe you can avoid paying commission to your agent, but if your buyer gets to you through an agent, guess who is going to pay his commission? That’s right: you.
We know you may think of selling your house FSBO to avoid high commissions, but if you are not familiar with the real estate business you may end up getting less for your house and paying commissions anyway.
Conclusion
Remember selling your house is an important business decision. Make sure you are fully committed and remember to approach it with a business mindset. Put your emotions in check.
So let us know if you are going to look for a real estate agent or if you rather find a cash buyer to get this deal done quickly?
Whatever you choose, we hope you get the best possible deal, and let us know how these tips and options worked for you!
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