Selling your home can be an incredibly emotional and sometimes even stressful process that can reduce even the most buttoned-down professional to a pile of nerves. That’s why it’s important to follow the right steps when selling your home.
Whether you know a little or a lot about how to sell a house, we’ve put together a quick, step-by-step guide on the process to help point you in the right direction and ensure your selling experience is as easy and stress-free as possible.
Make sure you’re ready to sell your home, both emotionally and financially.
How much does it cost to sell a house? There are major and minor costs to selling a house, and none should be overlooked.
The major costs associated with selling a house (or seller closing costs) include:
Other expenses that might be incurred when selling your home include:
No financial or other commitment is required on your part for the initial meeting with an agent. It will be educational and help you determine if you and the real estate agent are a good fit. Your RE/MAX agent will provide you with a comparative market analysis and talk about all the tools they’ll be using to help sell your home the fastest.
Once you’ve chosen an agent, they’ll help you establish an asking price for your property. Houses that are priced in keeping with what the market will bear generally sell the fastest.
View your home through the eyes of the buyer and ask yourself what you would like to see when you open the front door. You’d likely want to see a clean, freshly pained and uncluttered space where you could see yourself living, right? If you’re unsure what to take on, your real estate agent will give you tips on de-cluttering and other things to help your home be more saleable. This will be especially useful if your home has more than its fair share of “interesting” quirks. And if you’re wondering how to sell a haunted house, well, your real estate agent can probably dig up some tips on that topic as well.
When everything is in place, your agent will put your home on the open market and MLS. But your RE/MAX agent will also work hard behind the scenes, marketing your property to colleagues, clients and other contacts!
Potential buyers may ask to see your home on short notice. It is best to accommodate these requests if you can, as you never know which buyer might be “the one.” After each showing, your RE/MAX agent will follow up with those who viewed your home to hear their feedback.
If everything goes well, a buyer’s agent will present your agent with an offer. You have three choices – accept, counter, or reject the offer. Your RE/MAX agent’s knowledge of your needs will enable them to represent you in the best way possible.
At this point, you’ve accepted an offer and have agreed to all the terms set forth in the contract.
When the agreement of purchase and sale is accepted and signed by all parties, the Conditional Phase begins. The buyers will have a pre-determined amount of time to fulfill items, including home inspection, financing, home insurance, etc. On the date the conditions are removed, you’ll have a firm and binding contract for the sale of your home, and you can place the “SOLD!” sign out front.
This is the date of transfer of funds and ownership that was agreed upon in your binding contract. Be sure you are packed up and ready to go before this date!
Still have questions about buying or selling a home? A RE/MAX agent will be happy to help.
