5 Simple Steps To Selling Your Home Fast

Why selling your home fast is more important than you may think. Every day that your listed property goes unsold, it takes money out of your pocket. How much does it cost to sell your home? When you put your home on sale, the costs associated with owning that home do not suddenly stop. Even if you have moved out of the property, you will still have to pay the mortgage, real estate taxes, insurance, home maintenance costs, and, possibly, utilities. When you eventually sell the home, there will be other costs. But the most costly to you is the time the home spends on the market. Homes that spend a long time on the market sell for less than similar homes that spend a shorter time on the market. Days on the market (DOM) is something buyers look at to determine which homes are fresh. The longer a home goes unsold, the lower the offer buyers make for it. That is so because they think there is something wrong with the home or that the seller could be desperate to sell. As a homeowner about to sell your home, you want to reduce your carrying costs. The best way to do this is to make sure the house sells fast. Selling your home fast will reduce the anxiety you feel during the period. Here are five steps you can take to make this happen.

1. Make a good impression

The first impression prospective buyers have of your home can make all the difference. That is true whether they are encountering the property online or viewing it physically. To make the best first impression:

• Perform the necessary repairs: These do not have to be major repairs, but things like fixing loose tiles or touching up the paint.
• Clean and declutter: The less crowded the home is, the better it will look in photos and the more spacious it will appear.
• Boost curb appeal: Improve the exterior of the house; the landscape, front entryway, roof, fence, and other outdoor elements
• Hire a professional stager: A professional stager can help your home outshine the competition.

1. Work with the best agents

Some sellers view the money spent to hire a competent estate agent as a burden. Realtors know the real estate market and can help you make or save money by selling your home fast. Although there are millions of estate agents, not all of them can help your home sell faster.  The best agents have the networks and systems to get properties off the market in record time. You can find the best agents in your area by doing a Google search for the best agents in that location. From the search result, look for the agents with hundreds of positive reviews.

1. Look for alternative ways to sell your home

Alternative methods of selling your home may fetch you a little less money, but they will help you sell fast:

• Sell to a wholesaler: These companies pay cash and save you the hassles of dealing with banks. 
• Sell to an investor: Investors usually want to flip the home (resell it) or use it as a rental property, so they often look to buy below market price. One of the fastest ways to selling your home quickly.
• Sell to a developer: If your home is on a large lot, a developer could be interested in buying it because they can build a bigger house on the lot.

1. Price the home competitively

Selling for lower than the market value of your home is one of the best ways to attract attention from buyers and sell your property in record time. To sell at a lower price, you do not need to slash the sales price by 20%.  On the other hand, a 10% price drop or a difference of $20,000 between the list price of your home and similar homes in your location will grab attention. By doing this, you reduce the risk of selling below your desired price and the time the property stays on the market. What you lost in money, you make up for in time; you gain some and lose some, but overall you earn more.

1. Make them an offer that they can’t refuse

Another tip to selling your home quickly is that you can sweeten the deal for potential buyers by offering something that makes it easier for buyers or reduces their costs. Examples of things you can do in this regard include:

• Pay some or all of the closing costs: Closing costs are usually between 2% to 5% of the sales price of the home. Knowing that they don’t have this cost is a huge incentive for buyers.
• Offer to pay other fees: Fees associated with the sale of a home are; escrow, home appraisal, recording and transfer of the property, and more. By relieving the buyer of the burden of paying these fees, you make your home easier to buy.
• Do a pre-listing home inspection: This will improve buyer confidence and remove delays.

Finally, don’t forget to be pleasant and responsive; it can make a lot of difference. Brian Chandler of RE/MAX Alliance in Parker Colorado specializes in homes for sale and consulting with homebuyers on current housing inventory. Brian is a Top Agent Realtor with over 40 years of sales experience. Read more real estate homes for sale articles and posts.