Tuesday, June 16, 2020 / by Steve Smith
Selling Your Home? DON'T Do These 3 Things!
Going to the dentist. Passing calculus. Not eating that extra piece of cake. Waiting to sing your go-to karaoke song. Turbulence. Writing in cursive. Rain at an outdoor concert. Comedy sequels. SELLING YOUR HOME.
That's right, that’s the list of things that are not fun. But what if I told you that selling your home could actually be fun…or at least less not fun? (How's that for proper grammar?!)
First, let's get started. So you’ve decided to sell your home. Maybe it’s because you need more space. Maybe you’re selling because you want to downsize. Maybe you’re getting transferred to a new city for your job. Then there’s always the “Three D’s” of real estate, that always lead to a sale: divorce, debt and death.
Whatever your reason for selling, in order to maximize the sales potential for your home, here are my top three tips on what NOT to do. These tips might just lead to you and your family to actually enjoying the process.
And remember, no matter your financial circumstance, the name of the game is getting on and off the market as fast as possible. So let's dive into my three tips:
Do NOT do this #1:
Do NOT be cheap. You must spend money to make money. There are over TWO MILLION real estate agents in the U.S., but only a handful of them are qualified and prepared to actually help YOU maximize your sales price.
Do NOT hire your sister-in-law, neighbor or friend unless they are one of the top producing Realtors in the area- it always ends in disaster!
You get what you pay for, so realize that the best agents are going to go “all in” with you when selling your house.
Reduced fee real estate agents = reduced service.
Hiring the “new real estate agent” because they gave you a good deal means you’re going to learn right alongside them.
Let us earn our commission. A full fee real estate agent will guide you and will save you time.
Do NOT do this #2:
Do NOT assume.
My favorite color is blue, Pantone 293c to be exact. I LOVE the color blue…but I also love the fact that if I wanted to sell my house quickly, I wouldn’t have to paint over blue accents everywhere.
Still, neutral colors in your home will always bring you more buyers.
Decluttering will eliminate the “I wonder what’s behind this pile of wicker furniture?” questions from buyers.
Go ahead and recycle your National Geographic magazines you’ve been saving for so many years. Also, those Beanie Babies are actually not going to get your kids through college.
Do not assume that buyers can see through your stuff.
Do not assume that buyers don’t mind that you’re using your extra bedroom as a workout room.
Do not assume that buyers are also going to feel at home when they smell your German Shepherd as they walk through the door.
Do not assume that the cracks you have, that were caused by your poor foundation, won’t be a big deal to your potential buyers.
Appeal to the masses, and do not assume that your way of living is your buyer’s way.
Do NOT do this #3:
Do NOT covet and do NOT worry about what happened next door.
Yes, we know that you’ve seen what your neighbor’s house sold for and we also realize that your home was worth X amount more on Zillow.
Your neighbor’s house was on a larger piece of land, had many upgrades, and Zillow doesn’t always know what they’re doing (Sorry, Zillow).
For those of you about to embark on the home selling journey, I hope you have an enjoyable experience.
Get our FREE home Sellers Guide here.
Written by Rogers Healy is the owner and CEO of Rogers Healy and Associates Real Estate and Healy Property Management and Published on Fox News