After having a difficult time financially for quite some time, I realized that part of my problem was my personal housing costs. I really began evaluating what I wanted out of a home, and I realized that I needed to shop for a place that would work better for what I needed. I started paying more and more attention to real estate risks, and it occurred to me that I hadn't invested in a smart property. After talking with my real estate agent, I started focusing on changing my ways, and it was incredible to see how much brighter my future became.
Sometimes when you need to sell, you need to sell yesterday. The problem is that real estate is not necessarily a fast-moving transaction. In fact, it can take several stressful weeks or even months before a viable offer comes in. You can't stand on the corner waving people in. There are, however, several things that sellers can do to speed up the process and increase their chances of selling for fast cash.
1. Clean and Purge: Properly prepping a home for sale is a task that rests solely in the seller's hands. Only they control how the home is presented to potential buyers, not their agent, not the real estate market. Homes should not only be immaculate, but they should be free of clutter. It's hard, but sellers need to let go of all emotions if they want to sell as fast as possible. Pretend that you are walking through a model home. Get rid of all the personal photos, knickknacks, and extra furniture. Leave your living room with just a sofa, two chairs, and a coffee table. It is not how you would live in the house, but giving buyers a wide berth to walk around creates the illusion of space and allows them to picture their own furniture in the room.
2. Fresh Paint: No one wants to buy a house with a dark burgundy paint in the dining room, floral wallpaper in the living room, and marker all over the playroom walls. The cheapest, easiest, and fastest fix to everything is a fresh coat of paint. Prime the dark colors, remove all the wallpaper, and paint everything a neutral color. Neutral does not mean white, however. Pick a soft beige or gray that will complement any color palette that a future buyer may be working with. The goal is to appeal to as many people as possible.
Before you ask -- yes, all wallpaper needs to be removed. No exceptions. Yes. Yes, it is a lot of work. Your home will sell faster if you take it down before you even list the home with an agent. Buyers know what a pain it is, which is why they are often hesitant to buy a home with wallpaper. MSN Money even lists wallpaper as the number two item that hurts a home's value. Take a deep breath and get it done.
3. Stage to Sell: Hiring an experienced realtor is worth every penny because you have access to all their expertise. They know what sells in your market and what doesn't. Stage your home with their information in mind. If five bedroom homes don't sell and home offices are hot, take all the bedroom furniture out of your fifth bedroom. Buy or rent a desk and some chairs so you can create the illusion of a home office through staging.
4. The 6-Week Price: When you need to sell fast, ask your realtor what the '6-week price' or the '3-week price' or whatever number suits your timeline is. In other words, what price is going to motivate buyers so much that they come in droves to make an offer within the next six weeks? A good agent will be able to give you an honest answer based on current market conditions, including what has recently sold and what is currently for sale. You may need to get your price below your competition to hit your timeline.
5. Preorder Title: Ordering title work can take a few weeks. Talk to your agent about preordering a title. In a nutshell, this means that the title company gets a jump on their part of the transaction so if -- when! -- you get an acceptable offer, they are ready to go.
6. Revisit Price: If you agreed on a price with your agent that you both thought would get the job done and your showings have been slim, revisit the price. Run comparables every single week and see what sold in the last days and for how much. Do not be afraid to adjust the price every two weeks, if you are serious about selling fast, and keep adjusting until you reach your goal of sold!
When you really need to sell fast, do not sit by and hope for the best. Be a proactive seller and take steps to get your house sold. For more information, get in touch with a company such as OfferZoom LLC.