Most homeowners dream of a stress-free sale where they simply list their house, quickly found a potential buyer, collect the cash, and hand over the keys. However, the process is not as simple as it sounds. It may be your dream house, but for potential buyers, it is just another property. Unless you operate in real estate, selling your home in Maine is something you might not have done in many years. Implement the following tips to lure buyers and maximize your home’s sales price.
- Set a realistic price: the biggest blunder that every home seller makes is overpricing their home against comparable properties. There is a big reward for people who resist the urge to overprice their house. When sellers price their house at a genuine price in real estate, their house tends to sell faster. According to research, properties that are fairly priced or slightly underpriced actually sold faster.
- Declutter your home: appearance is crucial, so are the first impressions. Once you have got the potential buyer in your home, make sure you don’t get them any reason to leave. Take a minimalistic approach to stage your home to help the potential buyer envision what the space will look like. In other words, declutter all the countertops and make sure every item is in its place. Remove your personal photos so that the buyers are not distracted and can easily envision your home as theirs.
- Let go of the sentiments: when you have put a lot of money and effort into building your home, you get emotionally attached to it. To sell your home, get over your emotional attachment, and think of your home as a product. It is the biggest hurdle to overcome for many retirees, especially if they live in the same home for years. Therefore, selling your home requires you not to be sentimental.
- Hire a professional photographer: more than 90% of the buyers starts their search online, so the photos that you have listed online should be of high quality. A professional photographer will have the expertise to make your space shine in photos-identifying the best areas to photograph from the best angle to make them more inviting. You might be thinking of using your smartphone, but it is recommended to leave this step to professionals with expert-level equipment and knowledge. Professional and high-quality photos will help your home stand out in the search results and attract more potential buyers.
- Hire an agent who knows the market: selling a home can be a daunting task, which is why you need a property dealer who knows the process. You can choose the right person by delving into the real estate agent’s sales history and professional designation. Browse their online profiles to learn how long they have been in the industry, how many sales they have done, and what designations they have earned. Most homeowners avoid hiring a professional real estate agent to save on paying the commission, but they overlook the benefits of hiring them. An experienced agent will broadcast your home listing to a broad set of audiences to garner the best offer possible and negotiating on your behalf.
- Review and negotiate offers: after your home finally hits the market and buyers have seen it, the offers will start rolling in. This is where your agent will become your best advocate and go-to source for advice. If your home is listed in a competitive market that favors sellers, buyers will likely offer at or above the asking price, and you might even get multiple bids. On the other side, if the sales are slow in your area and you don’t get multiple bids, you may have to negotiate your prices. When you receive an offer, you accept it as is it, make a counteroffer, or reject it. Counteroffers should always be made in writings and have a short timeline for the buyers to send. While you are tempted to accept the highest offer, look closely at the other aspects of the offer, such as:
- Type of financing
- How is the buyer paying?
- Down payment amount
- Contingencies
- proposed closing date
- Requests for credits or personal property
If you are getting multiple offers, you might be tempted to accept the highest one, but be careful that the property has to be appraised if a buyer relies on lender financing. Any shortfall between the buying price and appraised value will have to be made up somewhere, or the sale could fall apart.
- Anticipate seller’s closing cost: both the homebuyers and home sellers have closing costs. The home seller normally pays the real estate agent’s commission. Some other costs paid by the seller include:
- Recording fees
- Government transfer tax
- Outstanding liens
Moreover, if the buyer has negotiated any credits to be paid at closing for repair or closing costs, the seller will pay those too. The real estate agent will provide you with a complete list of the cost you will be responsible for at the closing table. So, while the buyer normally pays multiple closing costs, know that you might have to pay some fees, too.
- Measure the tax implications:the great thing is many home sellers won’t owe taxes on profits from the sale of their home if you have owned and lived in your home for at least two out of the preceding five years before marketing it. Then you would not have to pay taxes on any profit up to $250 000.
- Get important paperwork to close; there is a lot of paperwork involved to properly document a home sale. Collect your papers all in one place to help things go more quickly. Some of the main documents you will require are:
- Your home’s original purchase contract
- Property survey
- certificate of occupancy
- certificate of compliance with local codes
- Tax records
- Appraisal from your home purchase
- Homeowner insurance, and
- Home inspection report
The bottom line
If you choose to sell your home by yourself, you need to make sure that you have in-depth knowledge of the selling process and laws to ensure that you don’t get shorted in the process. However, if you are looking for Portland properties for sale or finding the home selling process a bit daunting, you can approach an experienced real estate agent.
