Depending on the house, neighborhood, and local housing market, selling a home can be a tricky and sometimes frustrating process. If you price your home too high, it can sit on the market for months without any offers.
However, pricing it too low, you can end up feeling like a buyer got the better deal. Luckily, there are some strategies that can help you sell your home faster and often, for more money than you might expect.
1. Improve your home’s curb appeal to make the best first impression
When it comes to selling a house, you only get to make one first impression on buyers. That first impression comes from your home’s curb appeal.
- Try sprucing up your home’s exterior with brightly colored flowers and/or attractive shrubs.
- Keep the grass cut and the lawn looking good.
- Make sure that your windows and gutters are clean.
- If the paint on your house is starting to chip, give it a fresh coat of paint.
- Power-wash the exterior of the home if it is dirty for a polished look!
- Consider whether prospective buyers will find existing lawn furniture and decor attractive or junky.
2. Focus on quick fixes over extreme makeovers
A good real estate rule of thumb is that sellers should typically avoid investing lots of money in home upgrades before putting their houses on the market. That’s because you have no idea whether buyers will like those upgrades or not. Therefore, you could just be wasting your money – while hurting your home’s potential selling price.
Instead, make quick repairs and easy upgrades that are more likely to give you a better return on your investment. Make sure you have things like leaky faucets or broken light switches fixed. If your curtains look dirty and worn out, you can replace them with new, inexpensive curtains that will look more attractive.
Avoid spending thousands of dollars to re-carpet your entire house, hire a cleaning company to clean your carpet if it looks dirty. You may also need to consider the condition of your home to determine if you are selling a fixer-upper or a home with normal wear and tear.
3. De-personalize your home
Another tactic that can help you sell your house faster is to help buyers imagine themselves living in it. That is why you need to de-personalize your home as much as possible.
If you are still living in your house, try to remove at least one-third of your personal stuff and put it in storage. Put away family photos, personal keepsakes, and memorabilia. Arrange your furnishings in a way that maximizes the use of the space to show off your home’s floor plan.
You might even want to hire a professional home stager to help you stage your home for real estate showings.
4. Find a good real estate agent
Sometimes sellers decide they want to try to sell their house without hiring a real estate agent. For instance, they might not want to pay a sales commission. However, hiring a realtor can help you sell your home faster, as well as maximize its selling price.
A realtor will likely have a list of buyers who might be interested in your house. Furthermore, they can help you during the negotiations when it comes to countering offers from buyers. If you don’t have a lot of negotiation and/or real estate experience, it might be helpful to have a professional who will work hard to get you the best price for your home.
5. Price your home competitively to attract more offers
Many sellers start by pricing their home well above its value, leaving their house to sit on the market for months before they eventually slash the price by huge percentages. A smarter strategy is to start by pricing your home competitively. That way you will attract more interest from buyers, and get more offers. Done right, you can end up with multiple buyers in a bidding war, potentially pushing your home’s selling price well above your original listing price.
For example, if your home’s value is $250,000, you might consider listing it for $225,000 to make it stand out to buyers looking for a good deal. A bidding war could push the price up past the home’s estimated value in any case.
Working with a good real estate agent can help you find the right listing price for your house that will attract the most interest.
6. Hire a professional real estate photographer
In addition to finding a real estate agent, you need to hire a professional real estate photographer to capture the listing images. A professional photographer will make sure your property stands out on the MLS and third-party listing sites, like Zillow and Realtor.com.
Real estate photographers have several skills that allow them to capture the perfect shot. They understand composition, exposure, verticals, and how to tell a story through images.
Finding the right real estate photography provider
It’s likely that your real estate agent is a few steps ahead of you and already has a photographer in mind. If they’re in the market for a provider with high-quality images, easy online scheduling, and flexibility, refer them to Virtuance.
FAQ
Enhancing your home’s curb appeal can make a strong first impression. You can achieve this by adding brightly flowers, keeping the lawn mowed, and ensuring your windows and gutters are clean. Consider giving the exterior a fresh coat of paint or power-washing it if it looks dirty.
Instead of large, expensive makeovers, focus on quick fixes like repairing leaky faucets, replacing broken light switches, and cleaning carpets. You can also refresh old curtains with new, affordable ones. Small updates can improve the appeal of your home without wasting money on unnecessary renovations.
De-personalizing your home helps potential buyers envision themselves living in the space. Remove personal items like family photos and memorabilia, and consider rearranging furniture to highlight the floor plan. A professional home stager can also help you present your home in the best light for real estate showings.
Pricing your home competitively can attract more buyers and generate multiple offers. Avoid pricing too high, as it may lead to your home sitting on the market for months. A competitive starting price, slightly below the home’s market value, could spark interest and potentially lead to a bidding war that pushes the price above the original listing. A real estate agent can help you determine the optimal price.