Real Estate - What You Should Know About Selling Your Own Home
Most people are intimidated by the idea of selling their own house, and rightfully so. With the right careful planning, however, it can save you money and frustration.
If the idea of hiring a real estate agent to sell your property rubs you’re the wrong way,
you should know that you have the ability to sell your home on your own. However, prior to committing yourself to the process, you should factor in all the necessary steps involved. In this article, we will outline the process and provide tips to help get you started.
Step 1 – To start, you should figure out whether it makes financial sense to burden yourself with the expense and time necessary to sell your home on your own. For a rough estimate, on a home that sells for $100,000, the savings will generally amount to between $3,000 and $5,000, assuming the person purchasing the property uses an agent. In cases where neither party uses an agent, you can expect to save anywhere between 6 and 7 thousand per $100,000. While this is quite a number, be aware that you will be incurring various marketing expenses due advertising and promotion required to get the word out.
Step 2 – Serving as your own agent essentially means that you’ll be required to be available at all times in order to answer phone inquiries and scheduling viewings. If you have a full time job or are otherwise unable to take the time to handle these aspects, then it may make more sense to look into hiring an agent.
Step 3 – Look into additional options by which you can sell. Sale by Owner organizations are able to offer marketing resources and tools at an expense running far less than what a typical real estate agent would cost.
Step 4 – Take the time to research the prices that other homes in your neighborhood are being sold for. In this way, you will be best able to determine a reasonable price. Be sure to take your closing fees into account in addition to your selling expenses, and the cash amount you are looking to have post sale.
Step 6 – Create a general fact sheet outlining the features of the home along with a full color photo of the property. This should also include asking price, various features, utility pricing information, taxes, and contact info.
Step 7 – Make your property known! Get your fact sheets to local real estate agents, place ads, put up signs, and post fliers on local bulletin boards and other public forums.
Step 8 – Schedule your open house and SELL SELL SELL!
