Thinking of selling your current home?
Sometimes, selling might not be the best option! Most Realtors would never tell you not to sell…and will push you to sell, sell, sell, no matter your individual circumstances!
Well, that’s what I’m here for – to make sure you have all the tools and education that you need in order to make the best decision for you!
Renting out your home is sometimes a great option, and can build long-term passive income!
Selling can be absolutely necessary in some situations, and it’s my job to make sure you know everything you need to know throughout the whole process!
Schedule your free meeting with me, or take a look at some things to consider when selling below!
Things to look out for when Selling:
Photos: We will work together to get photos, a 3D tour, and a video completed for your property. Outstanding media sets the first impression, and no one is going to come and see a house if they aren’t drawn to it by the listing media! I’ve seen many unedited, poorly lit, sideways, and upside-down cell phone pictures…and that just doesn’t cut it in today’s market.
3D Tour: A 3D tour is a necessity – they let people almost do a showing from their couch comfortably at home. This accomplishes a few things: It weeds out not serious buyers who just want to see the inside of people’s houses – well now they’ve seen it and they won’t waste our time. It also lets out-of-town buyers really see the property and also lets potential serious buyers really see the house and be familiar with it BEFORE coming and seeing it in person. This is very important as if they feel like they already have a connection to the property and already have a feeling that they want it, then visiting in person only increases that feeling!
Videos: It’s so important to have a real video, not just a “slideshow” or “virtual tour” that most agents use as their video. I personally film HD listing tours on every listing, and have the video professionally edited!
Social Media/Marketing: Find an agent that knows how to leverage Social Media and Marketing to meet buyers where they are at in their own homes, and get your listing the exposure that you deserve! Make sure to pay attention to how they develop their audience of potential buyers, how many view they get on their posts and videos, the estimated size of their audiences, and if the views are local or just random and spread out across the US or even internationally. Make sure to have an agent that understands the difference between the reach of short-form and long-form videos, and find an agent that can explain to you why targeted local views are so important, versus just random views from people that have no intention of purchasing a home in our area.
Staging: Staging is super important! I see agents all the time that tell their clients to move everything out of their houses and leave it vacant. If you do the research, staging not only statistically nets you a higher purchase price, but it also statistically increases sell speed and lowers the risk of having to drop the asking price!
Showings: With technology in the palm of your hands, an electronic showing service is super important! We use ShowingTime – and if you are still living in the property when it is listed, it uses an automatic text message system to help you schedule the showings around your schedule!
Lockboxes/Security: Speaking of living in your home while it is listed, as a former police officer I especially know the importance of home security. Many agents use cheap lockboxes that will break with a good hit of a hammer (and unfortunately I’ve heard firsthand of other agents’ clients’ houses getting broken into). I always use the SentriLock lockbox, which is one of the most durable and secure lockboxes that you can get. This lock box also keeps an electronic record of everyone who opens and closes it and the times that they access it, so if we ever have any questions, we know exactly who was the last person to use it!
Upgrades/Repairs: Cleaning the exterior (softwash vs powerwash, landscaping, lighting, etc.)? Fresh Paint? Repairs? Renovations? What does your house really need to sell? When you have lived in a home for a long time and are used to it, you aren’t going to notice everything that you are used to when you see it every day. I can come in and provide an unbiased third-party opinion on what I think should ideally be done! Don’t just start doing random work on your house…work with a professional to figure out what will give you the best return on your investment!
Terms: As much as most agents like to think it’s all about money…honestly it’s really not. What terms do you need in order to meet your goals? Things like timing or allowing/not allowing certain things may be way more important than a few thousand dollars in the grand scheme of things, and making sure your goals are met can actually save you tons of money!
There is so much more that goes into listing your home for sale, and preparing for one of the biggest transactions of your life!
And as you can see here, there are a lot of costs that go into selling your home! In the real estate world, you truly do get what you pay for.
Choose quality over the cheapest solutions, not only when it comes to choosing an agent, but also when it comes to everything about your transaction! Going with the discount agent or discount service may backfire and have you to lose money in the long run!
Let’s chat about how we can work together to accomplish your goals!