A 'For Sale' sign can grow awfully dusty while waiting for potential buyers.
Selling your home is an emotional experience. According to the 2014 National Association of Realtors (NAR) survey, most home owners have lived in their home approximately 10 years, which is a lot of time for sentimentality to enter the equation.
But the reality is that buyers aren't sentimental about your house. They will either like it or they won't. The good news is that you can take better control over the situation by avoiding these 5 common mistakes:
#1: Failing to Bring Out Your Home's Best
Unless you have a housekeeper, your home could probably use a deep cleaning. Professional cleaning services don't cost much, especially compared to the benefit that they offer. After the cleaning comes the staging. This means removing all clutter, and arranging furniture in an attractive way. Professional stagers can help with this, too.
Next, think about curb appeal. Is your landscaping shabby? Could your front door use a coat of paint? The first thing any potential buyer sees is the exterior. If it's not attractive, they might drive right on by.
It's better to handle repairs than to keep secrets.
#2: Keeping Secrets About the Condition of the Property
Every home has its little issues. Maybe the water pipes bang, or perhaps the HVAC unit doesn't get the house as cool as it used to. While you might want to stay tight-lipped about problems for fear of losing the sale, secrets are always a bad idea. A home inspection will reveal many problems anyway.
Worse, problems that arise after the sale could land you in court, according to USA Today. Newly discovered chipped paint inside a closet would probably constitute a frivolous lawsuit. But a leaky roof or inoperable furnace would not.
#3: Not Planning for a Fast (or Slow) Sale
Naturally, home owners want their property to sell fast. As fast as possible, in most cases. But are you prepared in case that really happens? If your home sells soon after it hits the market, you'll need movers, possibly storage, and a place to live until you find a new home.
On the other hand, what happens if your house doesn't sell as fast as you'd like? If you're buying another house and the first one doesn't sell, will you be able to pay both mortgages while you wait it out?
A few minutes online with eppraisal puts you ahead of the game.
#4: Setting an Unreasonably High Asking Price
Some home owners assign a higher value than is reasonable, and that can ruin your hopes of buyers. Upgrades won't give you a 100 percent return on investment in most cases. So even if you did spend a fortune on hardwood floors or a new swimming pool out back, your home's value didn't automatically increase by the same amount.
That's why the services of eppraisal are so important. With a home valuation, you'll learn the estimated value of your home in minutes. And that value is based on real factors, such as comparable properties in your neighborhood, instead of sentimental value.
#5: Refusing to Negotiate with Potential Buyers
One of the quickest ways to lose a sale is refusing to negotiate. Some home owners can afford stand their ground. If you don't have to move, if the market is temporarily sluggish, or if you can simply afford to accept that it won't sell, standing your ground is fine.
But for most sellers, negotiation is critical to the sale. Accepting a little less than what you'd hoped for could help the property sell a lot faster. You want the most out of the sale, but so do your buyers. Negotiation helps both sides, and you get the benefit of walking away and on to your next adventure.
For most people, emotions play a big role in selling the home that they've lived in for several years. But an eppraisal home valuation can give you a clearer picture that's based only on facts and data, which is closer to a potential buyer's mindset.
If you're ready to sell and wonder about your home's value, click here for a free property valuation. It only takes a few minutes. But what you learn can empower you and help your home sell faster.
