The housing market can get pretty crazy, especially when demand is high and supply is low. Entering the market can feel intimidating and getting your house ready for sale can seem like a daunting task. Luckily, it doesn’t have to be! Making sure that your house is prepared for sale is key to getting an offer you want. There are some tips that you can follow that can make this process easier. First, you want to decide if it is the right time to sell your home.

Should You Sell Your Home?

When you decide that it is time to sell your home, you will need to take some aspects into consideration. Some questions you want to ask yourself before selling are:

What is the Value of My Home?

It is important that you figure out the worth of your home when deciding if it is time to sell. The best way to get an accurate estimate of the value of your home is to get a free offer. Companies can provide you the estimated value of your home. However there are other ways to guess as well.

If you want to avoid talking to a professional then you will want to look at other homes in your neighborhood. Online platforms like Zillow also provide these rough home value estimates for free.

How Much Equity Do I Have?

Your home equity is the percentage of your home that you actually own. This is due to the fact that people typically use mortgages to pay off their homes. However, if you paid for your home 100% upfront, then you would have 100% equity. On the other hand, if your home’s value was $275,000 and your remaining loan balance was $215,000 then you would only have $60,000 worth of equity in your home. Eventually you would reach that point of full equity but not until your loan balance is repaid.

A good rule of thumb is to have enough equity built up to pay off all the costs of selling your home. These costs can include paying off your mortgage, selling costs, moving costs, and your down payment on your next home. It can take years to reach this level of equity. In order to figure out your home equity you will need to take the home’s market price minus your loan balance.

What are the Costs Associated with Selling My Home?

You will need to anticipate the costs that you’ll be responsible for when selling your home. There are some that are obvious, but many others that people often forget about or don’t even know about going into the process.

Some costs that you may need to account for are:

• Home Preparation Costs
• Staging Costs
• Home Repairs and Renovations (if needed)
• Negotiating Costs
• Real Estate Agent Commissions
• Seller Concessions
• Finalizing Costs
• Closing Costs
• Relocation Costs
• Transition and Any Overlap Costs

These are just some potential costs that you could come across. You want to make sure that you can handle the financial responsibility of these different expenses.

How Long Will the Selling Process Take?

This process will vary by person. When someone may be able to sell their home immediately after only a week on the market, others can have their home on the market for months or even years. Factors like the season, and local market conditions also affect the time it takes to sell your home. There are better times that you can begin this selling process!

What is the Best Way to Sell My Home?

This varies depending on the person as well. The selling process of your home will take time. You need to account for factors like the amount of energy involved, time invested, and resources needed. The traditional way to sell your home includes professionals.

A real estate agent and a buyer coordinator will work together to handle the sale of the home. Your real estate agent will assist in marketing the home and handle the paperwork that is associated with the sale. However, this is an additional cost to account for so you want to take the time to find the right real estate agent for a price that you can afford.

How to Prepare Your Home for Sale

Now that you have taken into consideration all of the aspects associated with selling your home, it is time to prepare! You will want to prepare your house for the selling process. There are ways that you can prepare that can also possibly improve your chance of having it off of the market quickly!

Get Your Mindset in Order with Your Home

Your home is where you go after a long day, it is your area, your den. It can be difficult selling a home from an emotional standpoint. The memories that you created within your home can cause some heartache during the selling process. You want to make sure to get rid of your personal attachment. It will just cause the selling process to be more difficult than it needs to be.

Make Your Home More Standard

When you want to prepare your house for sale, you want to make it for the market. You want to get rid of any personalization. This means removing family pictures from the walls, hiding personal knick knacks, and anything that could turn the buyer’s attention away from the home. When you remove your personal belongings, the buyer can better envision their life in the house.

Fully Declutter Your Home

Many people do not realize how much clutter they gain over the years. Little things that can be thrown away or put into storage can take up room in your house. That is why it is beneficial to declutter your home to make it feel cleaner and lighter. You essentially want to begin the first stages of the packing process.

It may be beneficial to consider a storage unit. You can typically rent them for a manageable fee. This can provide you the opportunity to pack up your house even more to provide potential buyers the chance to see the house almost bare.

It is important to make sure that your personal belongings are not out for showings. Buyers may see something like artwork and ask that it gets included with the home. When you deny a buyer a request, it can hurt your chances of finalizing the sale.

Take Time to Organize Your Home

When potential buyers are looking at your home, they are looking at multiple aspects. This means checking out the storage space areas of the home. When you take time to organize these areas you provide a better look for buyers. It provides them the opportunity to get a better idea of whether or not the home will be a good fit for them.

See if You Can Make Repairs Around Your Home

Depending on the market, you may need to make repairs. Sometimes, though, demand is so high that even damaged houses can still sell quickly and easily. That is why it is  important to take that into consideration before deciding to spend the money on any repairs. Some repairs may be necessary, though. Make sure to properly check the level of urgency.

Ensure That Your House is Clean

Now that your house is emptied out as much as possible, it is time for the finishing touches. You want to make sure you properly clean your house. When potential buyers see a beautifully clean house, it gives the home a new breath of life. It is also important to be aware of your pets during the selling process.

Your pets may be a point against your home, especially if they come with an odor. If possible, have someone you trust house your pets while you are showing your home. This could make it easier to get a sale.

Don’t Forget About the Exterior

Just as the interior of your home is important, so is the exterior. You want to make sure that your home is clean and welcoming on the outside just as it is on the inside. It is also important to make sure the house number is visible. You want the buyers to easily find the property.

Take a Final Walkthrough of the Home

Now that you have prepared your home, you want to do a final walkthrough. Go to each area of the home as if you were a potential buyer. Look at the home with a critical eye. This can help you finalize the preparation of your home before buyers begin the staging process.

Tips for the Home Staging Process

Now that your home is prepped, you can take the extra step of effort. This is when you can consider the home staging process. Home staging plays into many factors like making the home appear bigger, setting a tone of the home, and more. Consider home staging to be like a cosmetic makeover for your home!

Consider Hiring a Professional Home Stager

These are essentially artists for your home. It is their job to take your home and transform it in a way that complements how the home looks while appealing to the buyers. Home stagers take on a variety of tasks. Some of these tasks can include furniture rearrangement, adding pieces to the home to accent features, and more.

There are a lot of accessories that home stagers may consider when enhancing the feel of your home. Some of these may be pillows, plants, rugs, mirrors, fake flowers, real flowers, lamps, ottomans, blankets, baskets, plastic fruit, and unique knick knacks.

Home Stagers are Pros at Enhancing Homes

There are common ways that you can expect a home stager to update your home. Some of these ways are by making wooden cabinets appear newer. They can achieve this by applying some orange oil. They will go from lackluster to attractive almost instantly!

Home stagers also like to put out bowls of fruit. Usual fruits that they may display are apples, oranges and grapes. These fruits aren’t going to be drab either. They will add a pop of color into an area and brighten up the space. That is why they need to be specifically good looking fruits. Finally, cookbooks are used by plenty of homestagers. This provides a nice homely feel to the kitchen which is a huge selling point.

How Much Does a Home Stager Cost?

The cost of a home stager will vary depending on who you get. Other aspects like location, size of the home, and level of demand also play a part into deciding how much they will cost. In order to avoid hiring another person, real estate agents may choose to stage the homes themselves. You can expect to see the fees be anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars.

How Can You Find a Home Stager to Hire?

The best place to start looking is with your real estate agent. They are familiar with the industry and likely have connections that can help. You can also research home stagers on your own. Researching online is a great way that you can get an idea of what stagers are available near your area. You can easily look at their reviews and certifications. Social media platforms can help with this as well. For example, there may be a local Facebook group that can provide details about home stagers available.

Overall

The home selling process can be pretty extensive. That is why it is important to first take the time to decide if you are ready to sell your home. Once you consider important factors in the home selling process, you can begin to prepare.

The home preparation process involves a lot of hard work and costs but it will likely pay off in the end. You want to make sure that you increase your chances of selling your home by having your house staged. This will make it much more attractive for the potential homebuyer. Don’t forget to look at other important aspects like the season and local market. These can be critical factors in determining how you will prepare your home as well.

Article References

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