How to sell my house fast

How to sell my house fast

Selling a home can be stressful, but it can be even more nerve-wracking if you’re pressed for time. Whether you need a quick sale for your new job for financial reasons or personal circumstances, there are strategies you can use to increase your home’s marketability, reduce the time it spends on the market, and attract strong offers. Here’s how to sell your house fast.

1. Clean and organize

There are many strategies for selling your home quickly, but when you’re pressed for time, one definite requirement is to make the interior of your home as attractive as possible to as many buyers as possible.

Find a storage unit and put away any extra items or large furniture that make the room look cramped, cramped, or cluttered.

Organize closets. Buyers are looking for storage space, so they are sure to check out closets, storage areas, and pantries. Don’t cram extra items into closets—leave enough room to give the impression that there is plenty of storage in your home. After all, 64 percent of buyers surveyed for Zillow Group’s 2018 Consumer Housing Trends Report said ample storage space was extremely or very important.

Personal items such as family photos, memorabilia and religious objects can distract buyers from imagining themselves living in the home.

Deep clean every room of the house including baseboards, kitchen cabinets, bathroom tiles and carpet. Since you’re short on time, consider hiring some professionals.

2. Choose a sales strategy

When deciding how to list your home, there are two traditional options for selling — selling by owner (FSBO) or selling through a real estate agent — as well as a few others.

Sell FSBO

One of the great benefits of selling yourself is the savings on commission (you save the 3% you pay your own agent, but you still pay the buyer’s agent 3%). However, if you want to make a quick sale yourself, you must be prepared to negotiate like a pro.

Be prepared to negotiate escrow schedules, handle contract paperwork, and consult with an attorney to ensure all forms are filled out correctly. Knowing the ins and outs of the process is especially important if you need to sell your home quickly.

Hire an agent

The benefit of hiring a professional real estate agent is that they know what it takes to sell a home in your area quickly. They will simplify things like contract preparation, negotiation, signing and closing. Of course, you have to pay them a 3% commission for their service.

Alternatives to Selling Your Home Quickly

If you want to completely bypass the prep work required to sell your home in a hurry, consider these alternative strategies:

Sold to investors. There are many reasons why selling to investors may be a good option, but there are potential trade-offs to keep in mind.

Sold to developers. This is often the only option if your home requires dismantling and/or extensive dismantling.

Sold at auction. You can sell your home quickly by auctioning it off, but you may be able to sell for less than the local market.

3. Selling price

According to a Zillow Group report, 21% of sellers say their biggest challenge is selling within their desired time frame. Even if you’re selling in a seller’s market, where there are many buyers vying for fewer homes, there’s no guarantee you’ll be selling your home quickly.

One thing that can really speed up your selling process is pricing your home competitively. Overpricing will result in more time on the market, and in the end, you may end up selling for a lower price – which will just take you longer to get there.

You may even want to price your home slightly below similar homes in your area to generate interest and spark a bidding war. The effectiveness of this strategy depends on the state of your local real estate market and how homes are selling in your area.

When setting your price, you may also want to consider the price point at which most buyers search in your area. For example, if you list your home for $399,000, it will show up in search results for anyone looking for a home under $400,000. But it’s only priced at $405,000, and it never shows up in their search results.

Set a price drop schedule

Before listing, take a close look at your schedule and, if you don’t receive any offers, decide on which day the price will be lowered. You can decide on the discount amount later, as it may change based on the feedback you receive from your family trip, but you should have at least one date in mind. If that time comes, it’s best to act quickly. The longer your home is on the market, the lower your chances of selling it for the listing price.

Consider Sales Incentives

If you know your home is going to be a hard sell, whether because of some unusual features or because you’re selling in a slow market, it’s sometimes worth offering incentives to potential buyers to boost the deal. Examples include upfront repair or improvement credits, paying a buyer’s closing costs, or offering items including appliances that aren’t always included in a sale.

4. Handle any quick repairs

While you don’t have time for major renovations, it’s still important to pay attention to any simple fixes that might deter potential buyers:

• Touch up areas where paint has peeled or scratched.
• Fix loose tiles.
• Repair loose door handles.
• Tighten leaky faucets.

You may also want to invest in some small upgrades to make your home show better:

• A fresh coat of paint on the inside.
• Install new hardware on kitchen and bathroom cabinets.
• Replace old or outdated light fixtures.
• Purchase matching (newer) appliances.

5. Phase and add curb appeal

No matter your schedule, every seller can benefit from having a weekend to clean the interior and exterior of their home. After all, making a good first impression on buyers is crucial. According to a Zillow Group report, 48% of recent home buyers said furnishing their home was extremely, very, or somewhat important to their home buying decision. 29% of sellers said landscaping was one of their pre-listing activities.

Pack your bags and hire a stager

Staging is a common tactic in real estate sales, especially if you’re looking for ways to sell your home quickly. A stage helps define a space and makes a room appear larger. If you want to speed up the process, you’ll want to store all your belongings. Professional decorators will bring their own furniture and decorations and arrange them in a way that brings out your home’s best features and makes you feel warm and welcoming.

Create curb appeal

The appearance of your home is the first impression a potential buyer will have of your home, so it is important that it looks welcoming, well-maintained and tidy.

Here are some tips to get your home selling faster with good curb appeal. When speed is important, consider hiring a professional gardener to quickly complete these tasks:

• Trim hedges, shrubs, and overgrown branches.
• Clear sidewalks and paths.
• Clean windows and doorknobs.
• Sweep cobwebs and debris off your front porch.
• Replace damaged lights or mailboxes.
• Paint the front door.
• grow flowers.

6. Hire a Professional Photographer

It might seem quicker (and cheaper) to take a few pictures of the house with your phone, but poor listing photos can keep your home on the market longer. In fact, according to a Zillow Group report, a whopping 77% of recent buyers said that viewing professional photos was extremely, very, or somewhat important to their home buying decision.

Professional real estate photos can cost just a few hundred dollars, and if you use a full-service real estate agent, they may even include photos as part of their service. See if your realtor or photographer offers 3D virtual home tours. They can quickly capture and improve listing page views on Zillow.

Before taking an image, make sure your home is well lit. Open blinds, replace old light bulbs or update fixtures to let in as much natural light as possible. This is also the best way to list appointments!

7. Write an Awesome Listing Description

Once you have chosen a listing price and your home is in order, you will need to create a listing description to help you sell your home faster. This is especially important if you sell yourself. If you use an agency, they may write the description for you, but it’s still important to know what makes a good listing description.

Highlight your home’s best features in your listing description, using effective keywords to make buyers stand out.

Include anything that makes your neighborhood desirable, such as school districts, proximity to public transportation, or local restaurants and parks.

• Include a sense of urgency: For example, “All offers must be submitted by [DATE].”
• Use your professional photos.
• where to post your listing

If you sell FSBO, you can upload your own listing to Zillow. Sites like Zillow also allow you to post 3D tours or virtual tours, which can give buyers a good idea of the layout of your property. If you use an agent, they post to your local MLS, which gets pulled into all major real estate search sites.

If you don’t have an agent, you can pay an agent a flat fee to upload your home to the local MLS on your behalf. In this case, you will be listed as a contact for all inquiries.

Additionally, whether you list your home through an agent or go the FSBO route, you can post your listing on social media (either through friends and family or for a fee), as well as place flyers and signs around your community.

8. Time the sale

According to Zillow, the best time to list a home is Saturday during the first half of May. Homes listed during this time period sold 6 days faster than average for an average of $1,600 more.

Peak sales times vary slightly depending on your local real estate market, so check your local information if you need to sell your home quickly.

9. Be flexible in showings

When selling your home quickly is the goal, it’s important to be as flexible as possible when it comes to showing requests. Yes, last minute showings can mess up schedules, but no one can buy your house if they can’t see it in person! If you’re not willing to accommodate buyers’ schedules, your home risks sitting on the market for long periods of time.

Hold an open day

A well-timed open house weekend is a must to sell your home quickly. This is the easiest way to get multiple buyers through the door. Make sure to prepare accordingly—clean the house, arrange flowers, provide some treats, and have flyers that buyers can take with them after their tour.

Private showing

Buyers requesting a private viewing may have never seen your home before, or they may have attended your open house and returned to take a closer look. As mentioned earlier, it’s important to be as flexible as possible when showing your home, even if it means you’re visiting the property 24/7.

If you’re listing your home FSBO, get ready to host your own tour. If you work with an agent, they should give you a tour or leave a lockbox for buyers and their agent. Sellers should avoid fairs if possible – it makes buyers uncomfortable.