What Sells a House?
When selling your home, several key factors significantly influence its marketability and ultimate sale. Understanding these elements can empower you to make informed decisions and optimize your selling strategy.
Condition: The adage "first impressions last" holds especially true in real estate.
Immaculate Presentation: Ensure your home is clean and decluttered for every showing. This means tidying up all visible surfaces, vacuuming, mopping, and ensuring bathrooms and kitchens sparkle. A well-organized space allows potential buyers to envision themselves living there.
Appealing Aromas: Engage the senses. A home that smells fresh and inviting can leave a lasting positive impression. Consider baking cookies, using subtle diffusers, or boiling a pot of cinnamon sticks and cloves. Avoid strong, artificial scents that might be off-putting. The goal is a welcoming, homey ambiance, not an overpowering fragrance.
Location: While you can't pick up your house and move it, its location is an undeniable and crucial factor in its perceived value.
Inherent Value: Proximity to good schools, desirable amenities (parks, shopping, restaurants), public transportation, and major employment centers contribute to a location's appeal. Understand that a prime location often commands a higher price, while a less desirable one may necessitate a more competitive pricing strategy.
Accessibility: The easier it is for potential buyers to see your home, the more likely it is to sell.
Accommodating Showings: Be as flexible as possible when it comes to scheduling showings. This might mean temporarily relocating pets, stepping out for a few hours, or making arrangements for last-minute requests. Every showing is an opportunity.
Visibility is Key: If your home isn't accessible, buyers won't be able to experience it firsthand, greatly diminishing its chances of an offer. A proactive approach to showings demonstrates your seriousness about selling.
Price: Ultimately, the market dictates your home's value, not personal needs or desires.
Market-Driven Valuation: Your home will sell for its fair market value, which is determined by comparable sales in your area, current demand, and overall economic conditions.
Realistic Expectations: It's crucial to detach personal financial needs or emotional attachments from the pricing strategy. The market doesn't care "what you need" from the sale, "what you want" to get, or even "what you have in it" in terms of past investments. An overpriced home will sit on the market, deterring potential buyers and often leading to eventual price reductions below what it might have sold for initially.
Finding Your Listing
Once your home is ready, ensuring it reaches a wide audience is paramount. Here are key platforms where your listing will likely appear:
BabcockRealEstateNE.com: As your agent, our website will feature your listing, reaching our network and direct visitors.
Zillow.com: This widely used real estate marketplace attracts millions of potential buyers daily, offering extensive exposure through its search filters and features.
Realtor.com: As a professional platform, Realtor.com is often a go-to for serious buyers. It showcases listings from MLS (Multiple Listing Service) databases.
Social: Leveraging social media, your listing can be shared on various local real estate groups and community pages and potentially through targeted advertising, reaching a broad and diverse audience.
What to Expect During the Listing
Selling a home involves several stages, each with its own expectations and procedures.
Showing Process:
Agent Notification: Your agent will call to notify you of an upcoming showing appointment. This ensures you have time to prepare the home.
Feedback Process:
Timely Insights: Expect feedback from showings within 24 to 48 hours. Your agent will relay comments from potential buyers and their agents, providing valuable insights into perceptions of your home. This feedback can help inform any necessary adjustments to your showing strategy or even price.
Offer Submission:
Navigating Offers: When submitting an offer, be prepared for various scenarios.
"Low-ball" Offers: Don't be offended by initial low offers. These are common and often part of a negotiation strategy. Your agent will guide you on how to respond.
Seller-Paid Closing Costs: Buyers may request that you cover a portion of their closing costs. This negotiable item can be a strategy to make the offer more attractive to the buyer without significantly altering the purchase price.
Home Inspection:
Anticipate Repairs: A home inspection is a standard part of the process. Expect that the buyer will likely request a few repair items based on the inspector's findings. These requests are usually for safety, functionality, or minor deficiencies.
Pre-Inspection Advantage: Consider a pre-inspection before listing your home. This proactive step can save time and money by identifying potential issues beforehand. It allows you to address them on your terms or disclose them upfront, potentially avoiding surprises and renegotiations later.
FHA/VA Financing:
Safety Criteria: Homes purchased with FHA (Federal Housing Administration) or VA (Department of Veterans Affairs) loans must meet specific safety, soundness, and security criteria.
Required Repairs: Appraisers for FHA/VA loans may mandate certain repairs to be completed before closing to ensure the property meets these guidelines. These repairs are typically non-negotiable for the loan to proceed.
Appraisal:
Loan Type Dependent: An appraisal determines the home's market value for the lender. This process applies to both Conventional and FHA/VA loans.
FHA/VA Repair Impact: As mentioned, FHA/VA appraisals can trigger mandatory repairs.
Under-Appraisal Scenarios: A critical point is, "What if the property doesn't appraise for the purchase price?" If the appraised value is lower than the agreed-upon purchase price, several options may arise: the buyer can make up the difference in cash, the seller can reduce the price, or both parties can negotiate a compromise.
Recipient of Appraisal: The appraisal report is primarily for the lender. While the buyer may receive a copy, the lender uses it to ensure the property provides sufficient collateral for the loan.
Homeowners Insurance:
Cancellation Responsibility: As the seller, you are responsible for contacting your homeowners insurance agent to cancel your policy effective the day of closing. This ensures you are not paying for coverage on a property you no longer own.
Final Walk-Through:
Ready for New Owners: This occurs shortly before closing. The house should be cleaned, free of personal belongings, and prepared for the new owner to move in. Ensure all debris is removed and the home is in the contract's agreed-upon condition.
Communication
Clear and consistent communication is vital for a smooth selling process. It ensures that you and your agent are always on the same page.
From Your Agent:
Weekly Contact: Expect weekly contact from your agent, even if there's nothing significant to report. Regular check-ins keep you informed of market activity, showing feedback trends, or any updates.
No News is Still News: Sometimes, "nothing to report" is a significant update, indicating the property is still on the market and feedback is consistent.
Preferred Method: Inform your agent whether you prefer communication via email, text, or phone calls so they can reach you most effectively.
From Seller (You):
Property Changes: Notify your agent immediately if any repairs or significant changes are made to the house after listing. This includes updates to appliances, new paint, or any structural alterations.
Travel Plans: If you plan to be out of town, inform your agent of your availability and any alternative contact information. This is crucial for coordinating showings, offers, or urgent matters.
Questions or Concerns: Never hesitate to reach out with questions or concerns. Open communication ensures that any issues are addressed promptly and effectively, leading to a less stressful experience.
Closing
The closing is the final step where ownership is transferred, and the sale is officially completed.
Fixed Closing Dates: Closing dates are notoriously difficult to change once set in the contract. Double-check that the date on your contract aligns perfectly with your desired timeline and availability, as last-minute adjustments can cause significant logistical challenges and delays.
Attendance Not Required: You generally do not need to attend the closing in person. Your agent can facilitate the signing of all necessary documents beforehand.
Prior Document Signing: You will sign all required legal documents, such as the deed and transfer papers, prior to the actual closing date, often with a notary public or your agent.
Utility Transfers: It is your responsibility to call the gas, electricity, and any other utility companies to inform them of your closing date. Crucially, do not have the gas or electricity shut off. Instead, arrange for the utilities to be transferred into the buyer's name on the day of closing to ensure continuous service.
Key and Opener Placement: For convenience, leave any extra keys to the house and garage door openers on the kitchen counter for the new owners. This thoughtful gesture ensures a smooth transition for the new owner.