The entire process of home selling can be a tedious affair and sometimes quite overwhelming too! There is too much to handle, from finding experienced real estate agents, pre-sale inspection, and house staging to marketing and negotiating offers. And since it can take a couple of months or more to find a suitable offer and finally close the deal, anxiety becomes second nature for many owners.
However, with proper approach and planning, selling a house should be smooth and hassle-free. Here is an ultimate guide for all those property owners planning to sell their homes in the near future.
Get Professional Help
The first and foremost thing to do is find an experienced estate agent who can help you find a suitable buyer. You can go online and search for real estate brokers who charge a flat fee or the ones who work on a commission basis; it is up to your choice. The best part is that you can easily get detailed information about their sales history, work experience, and professional recommendations on the internet. These detailed data should help you zero in on the one that you think fits your expectations and requirements.
Pre-sale Inspection
Once you are done hiring the agent, take suggestions from him/her about a pre-sale house inspection (optional). A pre-sale inspection can flag all the renovation or repairing (mechanical or structural) requirements to make the house ready for sale. Since agents are involved in house selling day-in-day-out, they have a fair idea about what buyers look for in a prospective property. Accordingly, you can focus on those areas of the house for any up-gradation/repairing, if required.
Hire a Professional Photographer
Whether you go for a pre-sale inspection or not, you need to hire a professional photographer to get the best photos of your house. The agent can help you in this regard. Professional-looking photos help a long way in attracting potential buyers. A virtual tour of the house can give customers an authentic feel and compel them to shortlist your home for purchase through these photographs.
Listing for Sale
The next thing to do is to list your house online for sale. Your agent will market the home on different real estate portals and multiple listing services by providing photos and information about the property. Finding this information, interested buyers or their estate agents are likely to contact you for house tours.
House Tours
This is an essential part of the selling process. Before buyers make a beeline to visit your house for a tour, it is recommended that you do a thorough cleaning of the property, remove unwanted furniture and personal stuff; basically, de-clutter. More the space to move about, the better! Staging the house for open tours is an excellent way to give potential buyers a chance to feel comfortable on the premises and make their decisions. During such visits, it is recommended that your estate broker take charge and discuss all details with the clients.
Offers and Negotiations
Most likely, within a few weeks of the sale listing, you would start getting purchase offers depending on the price you have quoted, the location of the property, the market trend, and the negotiation skills of your agent. If you are getting the price you mentioned, then nothing like it. But if that is not the case, negotiation should be your next logical step; your agent should come in handy here. A suggestion is that while negotiating, do not be too rigid on the price if there is less demand for similar houses in the market.
Finalize Paperwork
Once the deal is struck, the final step is to do the paperwork for the smooth transfer of property to the buyer. Some documents that you need to keep ready for the final buyout are the original purchase contract of the house, insurance documents, occupancy certificate, tax papers, and house inspection report (if done). If you are unsure what other documents you might have to hand over to the buyer, seek guidance from the real estate agent or an attorney.
Closing the Deal
The closure of the property sale would require you to pay commission to your agent, pay the government transfer tax, and any other payments left against the house. In case you wish to have legal aid during the transfer process, you can get the services of a real estate attorney to iron out any lapses in the transfer papers so that the sale is made without any hassles. Attorney fees may add up in the end, but it is worth taking their service.
Selling a house can be challenging for many and may lead to anxiety and nervousness. However, by following the suggestions above, you can easily and comfortably sell your home.
