How to Sell Your Home in 6 Easy Steps

It’s time to sell your home — but where do you begin? If you’ve never sold a property before, you might not know how to proceed. After all, you have to figure out the difference between a realtor and a real estate agent. That’s more complicated than moving altogether!

All jokes aside, you don’t have to stress too much. It’s undoubtedly a time-intensive experience, but you can make life easier with specific tips. Here’s how to sell your home in six easy steps.

1. Make Necessary Repairs

First, you need to make sure your home looks presentable. This part might take several weeks, especially when you have an older property that might need significant repairs. However, you might just need to apply some new paint. It’s up to your situation.

Here are some key changes to make:

• Declutter each space, as no one wants to see endless knick-knacks when they tour your house.
• Remove family pictures to help buyers envision themselves in your home.
• Fix any property damage, like worn floorboards, broken gutters and cracked foundation.
• Arrange furniture and decor so that everything looks appealing.
• Conduct a top-to-bottom deep clean.

There’s no need to make your home look like one from a magazine. However, you can’t leave your home in disarray and expect anyone to be interested. If you don’t know where to start, you can always hire a professional stager to make your house look amazing.

2. Look at Comparable Properties 

It always helps to know what the market looks like in your area. This way, you can sell your home for the ideal price. This information will help you manage expectations so that you don’t get your hopes up. Plus, you can see which upgrades will add value in today’s market. 

Remember that just because your neighbor’s home sold for $600,000 doesn’t mean you’ll get the same price. It depends on which special upgrades and square footage your home features. Therefore, you should only research local houses that are similar to yours.

3. Consider a Real Estate Agent

Now’s the time to hire a real estate agent. If you want to take the “for sale by owner” route, you can. However, you should also think about how well-versed you are in real estate. Experts know how to set the best price, find serious potential buyers and negotiate and close deals.

That’s why a real estate agent can be beneficial. But what about Realtors? These real estate agents are members of the National Association of Realtors. These individuals take an additional course to comply with the Code of Ethics, which can be more restrictive than state guidelines. This continued education can make a difference.

Be sure to interview potential agents, whether or not they’re Realtors. It’s key to find someone who understands your goals as a seller. Additionally, you may want to buy a home after you sell, so you should see how they can help with that part.

4. Determine the Best Price

If you want to know how to sell your home fast, you have to pick the right price. Be sure to stick with the facts as much as possible. It’s easy to feel emotional when you part ways with your house, which might make you price your property too high.

It’s best to have a real estate agent run a comparative market analysis, or CMA, to help you determine what price works. This report will provide extensive information about comparable homes, market conditions and more. This way, you can choose a price that makes sense.

5. Pay for an Inspection

Inspections aren’t just for buyers. If you take the time to have one done before you sell, you can locate potential issues. Then, you’ll be able to fix problems before buyers have a chance to negotiate money to repair them. It might cost a few hundred dollars — but you’ll save yourself additional time and energy in the long run.

6. Market With Professional Photos

What makes you click on a house listing online? It’s probably the photos. It can pay dividends to have someone take professional pictures so that you can sell your home quicker. After all, you wouldn’t be interested in a house that didn’t look appealing.

Because 79% of buyers in the U.S. browse the web for properties, you need to make your house stand out on the internet.

Know How to Sell Your Home Quickly With These Tricks

Now, you just have to wait until someone makes an offer. Then, you and your real estate agent will go through the closing process after you find a great buyer — and you’ll have sold your house. This process might take time, but you can increase your odds with these tricks.