How to sell a home in today’s real estate market
The current economic climate has certainly thrown a wrench in the traditional ways of doing business.
Pricing your home competitively is the most important piece of the puzzle. If you price your home too high, you will not get the traffic to generate an offer. Short sales and foreclosures are at an all time high and unfortunately this is affecting the price of homes in our area. Even though this may not be the reason why you are selling it still suppresses the price of your home.
Plan your selling Strategy
After you’ve crunched the numbers and made your decision that now is the right time to sell, come up with a strategy to achieve your financial and personal goals. Pricing your home correctly is the most important step in this process and will affect your ability to sell quickly and smoothly. A professional Realtor can prepare a CMA (comparative market analysis) in order to give you a range of your home value. This is usually accomplished by researching the market in your area.
After you receive your CMA, the pricing of your home is very important to the success of the sale so you need to be realistic. Know your competition (previously owned homes, foreclosures, new construction) and find ways to make your home stand out.
Market your home strategically and effectively considering incentives. Fairfield County is a buyers market right now, so your strategy will make the difference between stale and sold. Your Realtor should be able to guide you through this process.
Time your sale to maximize your selling price
Real estate activity has two distinct peaks during the year — one just before spring and another in the fall. The influx of potential buyers during these periods can help improve your chances of finding a buyer and selling at top dollar.
The first peak season typically begins in February or March and runs through
Memorial Day, with house hunters looking to buy homes and move in by the summer. Parents of school-age children need to make cutoffs for enrollment and work to ensure a smooth transition for their children.
The second peak season starts after Labor Day and goes through November. Buyers are looking for motivated sellers, such as those who missed the spring season or are juggling two mortgages.
If possible, avoid selling during the winter month unless you have to. Most people are focused on the holidays or Christmas shopping, not on buying or selling a home. However, there is a benefit to this time of the year and that is there are a reduced amount of homes on the market, so there is less competition.
Staging you home is of utmost importance
You have a plan and now its time to execute. Prepare your home by cleaning and staging it so buyers can see themselves living there. In today’s market open houses and cookies are not enough to gets buyers interested. Skip the gimmicks and focus on marketing your house effectively. Technology and the internet have empowered buyers, so make them work for you too.
Start with the outside
Your lawn and the homes exterior is your first chance to reel in buyers. If they see an overgrown lawn, yard debris or peeling paint they will move on to the next property. Paint and landscaping will make the difference of them coming in your home or driving right past to the next.
Now the inside
Make sure that your home has a fresh coat of paint. This is the least expensive and most impressive thing that you can do. Get rid of all unnecessary furniture the knickknacks and clutter. Clean every room until it sparkles.
Close the deal
You’ve done all you can to prepare and show your home. Now you can sit back and watch all the offers come in. Not! Offers come in all forms, from the dreaded low ball to the contingency crazy. The key is not to take the offers personally. They are not reflections of your home, they are business propositions.
Review every offer carefully, evaluate the buyer and negotiate terms so you could come to a deal. A signed contract doesn’t necessarily mean its over. You have to pass the inspections and negotiate more if needed. Once you are at the closing table and all paperwork has been signed the transaction is complete and you can celebrate!
Betty Bondi
Bondi Realty Group LLC
203-899-9990
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