07/15/2021
10/07/2020 by REMAX
6 COMMON MISTAKES MADE WHEN SELLING A HOME â AND HOW TO AVOID MAKING THE SAME HOME-SELLING MISTAKES
Sellers who avoid these preventable mistakes could close a home sale following a smooth and worry-free process.
4 min read
Selling a home can be a complex process. To keep it hassle-free from for-sale to sold, consider these common mistakes people make when selling their homes â and avoid making them yourself.
1. Skimping on necessary repairs
Some sellers ignore major repairs in hopes of closing the sale before anyone notices. However, if the home inspector catches detrimental damage, it will likely halt the sale until repair â or an agreement â can be made.
To save yourself the hassle and to streamline the selling process, assess any serious repairs before listing your home. It may feel unnecessary to repair a home youâre soon to leave, but it could help you pass inspection â and possibly get top dollar â on your property.
2. Not prepping the house for showings
Your home is bound to be filled with mementos, photographs, kitchen magnets and all of the wonderful details that make it unique to you. But an important part of preparing your home for showings is to minimize knick-knacks.
To do so, store away any clutter that would distract an interested homebuyer when they enter a room or open a closet or cabinet. Tidy up all surfaces, including bookshelves, end tables and kitchen countertops. By cleaning up messes, youâll help rooms appear larger, so buyers will be able to envision their own belongings in the space.
Donât forget about curb appeal. Buyers will likely form an opinion of your home before they enter the front door. When you clean and stage the interior of the home, head outside and give a bit of TLC to the exterior too. Depending on the season, this could include anything from weeding mulch beds, putting out planters or touching up chipped paint on the houseâs exterior.
3. Using inadequate listing photos
Listing photos can make all the difference when attracting homebuyers who begin the homebuying process online. Digital listings for even the most magnificent of homes will receive far fewer clicks if they arenât presented with high-quality photos.
For example, photos with ample lighting can help a room appear spacious. As mentioned above, prepping the home before listing it for sale by cleaning and decorating helps ensure that photos capture each room looking polished and sophisticated.
4. Listing it FSBO
Sellers who list their homes for sale by owner, otherwise known as FSBO, could face major setbacks along the way and may even end up receiving significantly less money in return. In order to ensure the sale is legally sound, and that youâre receiving competitive offers, itâs important to hire a real estate agent.
As your representative in the sale, a real estate agent will offer guidance and make sure the process goes smoothly. Qualified agents dedicate their lives to helping people navigate the buying or selling process â so why attempt it alone?
5. Setting an inflated price
Be realistic and timely when setting an initial listing price. Read up on your local housing market to learn the current trends of buyers and sellers. For example, selling in a sellerâs market may mean that you list your home for sale at a higher price to account for the increased demand.
Hiring a real estate agent, who can help guide you to a fair listing price, can be critical. Sometimes, setting a price that is disproportionate to the value of the property means that the home will sit on the market for days on end. Accordingly, buyers who see a home sitting on the market endlessly without any movement may question the integrity of the home.
6. Underestimating costs associated with the process
Before your home hits the market, make sure youâre aware of the costs associated with the process. While your initial investment may be some routine repair, staging and professional listing photos, bear in mind that, as the sale progresses, youâll typically be paying for closing costs, moving expenses and fees associated with hiring a real estate agent.
Consider these costs to be investments. The return is when you receive higher value back on your home due to how it was presented to interested buyers or how it was represented by an experienced real estate professional. That said, make sure to budget for these costs in advance to avoid any surprises.
