When Selling Your Home, You Should Price It Higher To Leave Room For Negotiations
Pricing a home correctly out of the gate is one of the most important tasks when listing your home for sale. You will get the most activity the first three weeks your home is listed for sale. Many times if buyers come through and think the home is way overpriced, they will not give it another thought and move on. On the other side of that, some buyers may even bypass your home completely if it is beyond the price range they are searching. If you have the right price when you list, you will have consistent showings and much interest. No showings? Price or condition are likely your downfalls.
You Get a Better Deal If You Buy a Home Through the Listing Agent
Buying a home is a big commitment and making sure you understand everything in the process is key, especially if you are a first-time home buyer and haven’t been through this experience before. Having your own representation and using a buyer’s agent who is working directly for you can have definite advantages. The agent is working solely for you and your best interests. The agent may be more willing to negotiate hard on your behalf. If you choose to purchase a home and work with the listing agent, the listing agent may become a “dual agent” and if all parties agree, will then be representing both seller and buyer equally. In some cases, this is fine if the deal is rather cut and dry, but if there is a particular situation where the agent may know too much or be favoring the listing side, this could pose a problem. It is not always a given either that the listing agent will give the seller a break on commission if the listing agent also represents the buyer in the transaction.
My Home Won’t Sell Unless My Realtor Holds an Open House
This is definitely not true. While there are many advantages of having an open house after you’ve listed your home for sale, like trying to get the majority of showings out of the way in one weekend, or having the listing agent present during the walk-throughs to answer any questions, or even trying to secure a buyer, there are also down sides that you should consider as well. Not everyone who walks through the open house will be a qualified buyer. Many times there are nosy neighbors or people that enjoy just popping through and browsing at homes as a weekend hobby. There is no way to pre-qualify a buyer before stepping foot into the open house, but if agents are setting up actual appointments with their buyers, the buyers are most likely pre-approved because Realtors usually don’t take clients out who cannot actually purchase a home.
Selling a Home For Sale By Owner is Easy & Saves Tons of Money
There is so much more that goes into selling a property than just posting your home for sale on Zillow with some pictures. FSBOs often end up losing money by not hiring an actual professional-maybe because they overpriced the home and it became stagnant on the market for 6 months. Maybe because they weren’t willing to pay commission or work with a buyer’s agent (most people want to work with an agent as protection during the transaction so this is a definite deterrent because buyer’s do not want to pay out of pocket for their agent to represent them). There are so many parts to a transaction as well including ordering title work, dealing with the lender, preparing an appraiser packet, etc. that a real estate professional has experience with an can handle smoothly to make things a lot easier for you as a seller.
You Don’t Actually Have to Do any Prep-Work Before Listing Your Home For Sale
This is a big myth. Doing what you can to get your home in the best shape before it hits the open market could ultimately end up making the difference and helping your home sell quickly and be more attractive to potential buyers. It is hard for people to look past your “stuff” or major renovation project or big ticket items, so decluttering, getting a storage unit if necessary, having a pre-inspection to address any major items that may come up later, and keeping your home tidy are key factors in helping your home sell quick.
Realtors Will Do or Say Anything to Make a Sale
This is false and definitely false for us at Team Hamilton. As members of the National Association of Realtors, we are held to a set of standards and code of ethics. Aside from that, we operate our business with integrity and honesty and have your best interest at heart. We don’t want to just work with you for one transaction. We want to be your Realtor and expert for life. Even if you have an issue come up after you’ve already closed on your home or you need a recommendation for a contractor. We are here to help you and want you to have a positive experience whether you may be buying or selling. Selling or purchasing a home is one of the biggest investments you may make or earn and it is our goal to guide you through a smooth transaction.