We can help you build a marketing plan for your home that will help to improve your chances of selling it at the best price possible, in the shortest amount of time.
Much of an agent’s work is quiet, behind the scenes – and important. Promoting your home involves several outreach efforts, including scheduling, marketing and hosting open houses, following up with open house visitors, having conversations with ad respondents, and posting photos and virtual tours on the web. Being your guide and confidant is part of the process as well.
Selling can entail a variety of marketing strategies which will help set it apart in your local marketplace and attract buyers. Once listed, the home will be quickly entered into the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS), displayed on century21.com and distributed to over 500 national and local real estate websites, where most buyers begin their search for a new home.
Following these 10 tips will help to add value to your home and increase your chances of a sale.
Setting the right price for your home is the most important decision you will make. Learn how to study market trends and set the optimal price for your home.
A key part of your marketing plan is setting the list price. Quite simply, if a home is priced too low, you miss out on potential profit. If a home is priced too high, qualified buyers will look elsewhere.
To determine the best asking price, review the prices of recently sold, comparable homes in the area; evaluate the competition, and study marketplace trends. As CENTURY 21® Sales Professionals, we have ready access to this information, and can provide the big picture to help you determine the right asking price.
It is also helpful to discuss with us other terms and conditions that can be included in the sale of the home to make it more attractive to potential buyers. For example, an owner can offer to pay points or complete a major repair – such as a new roof – to make the deal more appealing to a qualified buyer. A home warranty is another useful marketing tool, providing protection if an appliance or other covered item fails after closing. Home warranties are a relatively inexpensive way for a seller to add value to a property.
Other factors to consider:
TIP: A formal written appraisal can be useful if your property is unique, or there hasn’t been much activity in your area recently. It’s also helpful when co-owners disagree about price, or there is any other circumstance that makes it difficult to put a market value on your home.
You want potential buyers to feel at home from the minute they walk up the driveway. Give them a canvas to fill. It’s showtime!
Start with a good cleaning, eliminate clutter, put away the knickknacks and add fresh coats of a neutral-colored paint to brighten rooms. Oh, and tidy up the yard. We can give you all sorts of tips to help boost your home’s curb appeal and impress potential buyers once they’re inside. Here are a few basics:
Move your cars to an alternate location, take the pets & children for a ride somewhere and be out of the house when it is being shown by a Realtor. Potential buyers usually feel more comfortable – and less pressured – when the owners are not present.
TIP: One way to make a home more attractive is to purchase a Home Warranty. This insurance protects you, the seller, from paying repair or replacement costs of major items during the listing period. It also protects the buyer during their first year of homeownership.
Successful negotiating encompasses the acquired ability to use certain skills and techniques to bring about coveted win-win results. We can help you stay focused, objective, and not let your emotions rule.
The real estate closing is a meeting in which payment is transferred from buyer to seller. Find more information about closing a home sale here.
Closing is essentially a meeting where the closing agent (the party who conducts settlement – usually a local attorney) takes in money from the buyers, pays out money to the owner and makes sure that the purchaser’s title is properly recorded in local records along with any mortgage liens. All papers have been prepared by closing agents, title companies, lenders and lawyers. This paperwork reflects the sale agreement and allows all parties to the transaction to verify their interests. For instance, buyers get the title to the property, lenders have their loans recorded in the public records and state governments collect their transfer taxes.
The closing agent reviews the sale agreement to determine what payments and credits the owner should receive and what amounts are due from the buyer. The closing agent also assures that certain transaction costs are paid (taxes and title searches).
Closing is also the time when “adjustments” will be made. For instance, suppose you’ve pre-paid taxes four months in advance. In this case, the closing agent will compensate you for the prepayment at closing by having the buyer pay you additional money.
It could also work in reverse. If you are behind on property taxes, the closing agent will reduce the money due to you at settlement by the amount of the unpaid taxes.
Selling your home and moving to a new one has unique challenges. This collection of tips will help get you off on the right foot.
Whether you have moved once or a dozen times, it never seems to get any easier. Here are some hints that we hope you will find helpful as you prepare for moving day.
Start packing early. Anything that you are sure you will not be using before moving day should get boxed.
TIP: Organize like items together and mark every box and carton. This makes it easier if you find you need an item before you move, and much simpler after you move. Unpacking tends to be a gradual process–this simple step will help you find the items you need when you need the.