There is more to selling your home or investment property than putting up a ‘For Sale’ sign on your front lawn. Here are the first things you should check off your list to help you get the largest return from your investment and to ensure the process runs as smoothly as possible.
Choose a quality agent
Finding the right real estate agent is an important part of achieving a good sale price. Real Estate Agents can provide a great deal of advice during the sale process. You will also need someone who knows how to attract the right buyers to your property, to do this they need to know the local market and the type of buyer who would be interested in your property. Knowing your buyer profile is extremely important.
You can start by researching Real Estate Agents, particularly those who have had success with the sales of similar properties in your area, for example, they may have had achieved recent record sale prices. Contact these agents and really put them to the test, ask them for recent sales results; what marketing strategies they use; test their knowledge of the local area and their understanding of the current market. Do they communicate with you in an efficient, professional and in an approachable manner? This is important as you need them to appear this way to your prospective purchasers as well.
Make sure the agent specialises in your local area and is someone you feel comfortable around as they don’t just negotiate prices on your behalf, they also act as a mediator and represent you as a vendor.
Polish & Style to sell
Thinking that your home will sell itself can be a costly mistake. Despite how much you like the way you have it set up, it doesn’t mean it’s to everyone else’s taste. Prior to selling it’s important to thoroughly clean, de-clutter and repair anything that needs fixing. Have an outsider look at your home can help, when you live in a house you don’t tend to see all the items that need attention.
You want to make your home as attractive as possible to your prospective buyers. The more attractive your home looks, the more likely a buyer will pay top dollar for it. Showcase your property’s strong points and give the prospective buyers that wow factor!
Knowing your buyer profile can help you to style your property, a professional stylist can help with this. Whilst this adds additional costs to selling your home it can potentially give you a much greater return on your eventual sale price.
Marketing works!
You want as many people as possible to know your property is for sale. The more people aware and interested will increase competition and that in turn can lead to a greater sale price.
High quality photos can make a significant difference in your marketing. If you use a stylist they may have their own professional photographer or your real estate agent may use a photographer. You need to research the photographer, look at their previous work and review the quality. Most importantly, sign off on what photos are being used and if you’re not happy ask for another photoshoot. You are paying for this service and want the best possible photos to highlight the features of your property.
A good Real Estate Agent can help you in this area, after all they also want to maximise the sale price of your property.
Don’t take things personally
Remember this is a business transaction; don’t feel insulted if you receive feedback on the property that doesn’t match how you feel about your home. To ensure you come out with the best deal, remove all emotion and think of your house as a commodity.
Sort out your finances
If you are selling a property then you are more than likely considering purchasing another property.
Having an idea on what type of property you want to purchase after your current property sells is important. You need to know the price range you can afford and more importantly that you can obtain any finance needed. Whilst you may sell your current property for a great price, it may not mean much if you then can’t afford to purchase your next family home.
Speak to us at Wyze Finance to ensure that your plans after selling – whether they are buying a similar property, upgrading or building – are feasible. There is nothing worse than selling your home and then not being able to achieve what you had set out to do.
Prepare the paperwork
Getting together all the documents required is a tedious yet necessary part of the process. Before a property can be marketed for sale, your real estate agent requires a copy of the Contract from your legal representative.
Have your pre-approval ready for your next home purchase. See us at Wyze Finance for this.
Surround yourself with a good team
Effective communication between your finance broker, conveyancer and real estate agent should ensure you are blissfully unaware of any minor issues that pop up during the sale of your property.