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By Gary Kelley
It’s the time of year for resolutions. One of the resolutions many people may have is getting a new house.
When it comes to selling a house, the first step is a listing consultation with a Realtor®. In this discussion, my partner and I will review your objectives, your target time frame, and what you want in a new home. We will review our process and time frames. This is very similar to a first date. You are trying to see if you like us and frankly vice versa. We want to make sure we are good fit together as there needs to be a large amount of trust and respect between all parties.
If you are going to be looking to buy a new house and simultaneously sell yours, we need to review your financing alternatives (if needed.) It is common for people to need to sell their home to purchase another one and having a strong finance or mortgage person available is key.
One of the big questions is what is needed to prep the home for sale. Most people need some degree of preparation because they don’t live in a showing-ready environment. In some cases, this is the biggest step of all. If someone has been in a home for decades inevitably there is an accumulation needing attention. THIS CAN BE IS A LOT OF WORK and is often a stumbling block for a seller. We believe in a very draconian approach – if something hasn’t been touched in two years it probably isn’t needed and can be donated or trashed. We often recommend people keep the stuff they want and let the remainder be removed. Can’t decide? Put it in storage! (Hint: Pack up what you don’t need and store. You’ll be ahead of the game when it is time to move!)
We also believe in light staging, supplementing homeowners items with decor items. We used to bring truckloads of staging and found it largely unnecessary. Now we add faux plants and white towels in bathrooms.
Professional photos and floor plans are a must. Floor plans can be made in a matter of minutes by scanning on a smartphone. I still firmly believe professional photos make a huge difference in selling a house and I am the first one to acknowledge I am not a professional photographer. This is an area where I believe the pros make a huge difference in a listing.
This all goes into a marketing approach incorporating online, print, etc. Once photos are on the multiple listing service they are distributed or syndicated to other sites. Having a well thought out marketing approach is imperative.
We believe in making a splash where the new listing to gets in front of as many eyes as possible. This is when showings will commence and you need to show it to sell it. When the listing hits the open market you may want to visit a friend for the weekend as showings can be intrusive . We talk to other agents and make them aware of the property so they in turn can spread the good word. Sellers will often have great anxiety waiting for that first offer to arrive.
Once any offers are reviewed, focus shifts to reviewing contingencies on offers. It is not uncommon for a buyer to have a home sale contingency and we work to understand where that home is in the sales process. There can be cascading sales and it is not a case of the more the merrier! Also, we will want to understand any inspection contingencies!
Once an offer is accepted the home will need to be cleared and cleaned for the eventual sale. On closing day there will be a walkthrough of the property to ensure the buyer is getting what they expect. This should all be laid out in a purchase and sale agreement.
Once the signing of the deed takes place, the new owners cannot get the keys until the property is recorded at the registry of deeds.
Once the painting on the new place starts the real estate agents become scarce. I hate painting! But if you need recommendations for anything home related, you can always call…. I’m around even after the sale is closed!
Need tools for home search: MoveWithGary.com.
Gary is heard on WCRN AM 830 and “All Things Real Estate Podcast” on all the major podcast outlets.
If you need advice on selling your home or buying a new one, give us a call 508-733-6005.
