Steps to Selling a House

Selling a house is a complicated process, which is why this comprehensive guide to selling a home should assist you in making the process easier and less stressful for you and your family.

It's possible to sell a home on your own, but it's not recommended. From marketing to networking to the final negotiations and contract preparations, a realtor is a trained expert who can streamline the process and make the entire thing much easier. A realtor will have the contacts you need to lessen costs and stress during what can be an emotional and challenging time, leaving you with the freedom to focus on moving to your new home.

Preparing your home for the market is the most important step of the process. Unfortunately, some sellers mistakenly think they need to do significant home renovations on the house beforehand to discover it didn't earn them extra money.

Work with your realtor to determine what your house needs. In most cases, deep cleaning, fixing minor repairs, focusing on curb appeal, decluttering, and depersonalizing are enough, but sometimes you might need extra help in the form of professional staging.

Apart from preparing your house for the market, marketing the property is the next most important step. This is the step where having an excellent realtor pays off. An established real estate professional knows what it takes to impress discerning buyers. Generally, a realtor will assist you in compiling marketing materials and creating elaborate campaigns that involve professional photography, videography, creating virtual tours, print, and social media material.

Using innovative and sophisticated marketing to appeal to your target audience is how you make your house stand out in a crowded market. That's why it's important to get your house in show-ready condition, so it's ready to go for open houses and tours when the marketing phase begins.

Okay, so your house is in pristine condition, your realtor has started the marketing campaign, and interest in your property is starting to trickle in. What's the next step in the process? At this point, your realtor will start to schedule open houses and individual tours for buyers.

For every person that comes to your house to check it out and consider purchasing, they will also leave feedback with your realtor. Then they can take that feedback into account to make improvements or consider adjusting the marketing to appeal to a broader range. That feedback is vital because it tells your realtor if the marketing is working and whether there are ways to drum up more interest or alter the asking price.

Receiving the first offer on the house is incredibly exciting for any seller; it means someone might be interested in buying the property! But offers are about a lot more than the price. There are many factors to consider, especially since you'll have to consider if the offer is too low or even too high.

Beyond the financial aspect, this stage also comes with terms regarding inspections, appraisals, and other factors affecting the deal. The home inspection will let the buyer determine if they want to buy the house in its current condition or if they might offer less because of damages or other issues. Your realtor can likely recommend a trusted, certified inspector. A realtor with strong negotiation skills will assist in navigating the offers you receive and potentially planning a counterbid.

Once you and your realtor have settled on an offer, you'll finally be into the home stretch and close to selling your home! In this step, the final contingencies relating to the title and financing will happen along with any remaining paperwork and the final walkthrough.