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6 Mistakes to Avoid When Selling Your Home

6 Mistakes to Avoid When Selling Your Home

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If you’ve never previously sold a home before, you might believe the process is fairly straightforward. You decide to sell, you list the property, someone puts in an offer, you accept, and the sale is done. 

Sadly, selling a house is much more challenging, emotionally draining, and time-consuming than the above scenario paints.

In fact, there are numerous points to consider if you want to succeed in selling your house at the right price. Even just one error can delay a sale or see its price plummet. To avoid the many pitfalls that exist, and to achieve the highest possible price while getting the sale done within a satisfactory time frame, here are six mistakes to avoid when selling your home 

1. Getting too emotional 

Selling your home can be an emotional experience. This is particularly the case when it’s your first property. You spent a lot of time finding the right house, decorated it to your exact specifications, and created countless memories in this space. Now it’s time to let go and say goodbye. 

However, it’s essential you do not become too emotional. There’s still a business aspect attached to selling your house and remaining professional is crucial. People will come into your home and criticize the décor, the room arrangement, and everything that you love about your abode. Oh, and when you finally find someone that’s interested, they will put in a lowball offer. 

Keeping your emotions in check will stop you from making rash decisions. It can also help in putting you in the shoes of potential buyers. Think about your feeling when you were in the market for your current home. You were enticed by certain features and décor, right? Well adding modern touches to your property’s appearance, the type that current homebuyers are searching for, can make a big difference in attracting viewers and bids. 

2. Selling without a real estate agent

It’s true: you can go it alone and sell your home without any assistance. While this can be a tempting path to go down – particularly when you don’t want to hand over a percentage of the sale on commission – it’s not advised. 

What is advised, however, is to work with a real estate agent. A quality agent is one that puts your best interests first. They will know the most competitive – and fair – selling price for your property. They’ll interact with potential buyers, negotiate the sale, and ensure you walk away with the best deal. Furthermore, an agent will deal with all the finnicky paperwork and handle any issues that crop up during the transaction process. 

You might be handing them 5% or 6% of the home’s sale price, but the expertise provided by a real estate agent can often be worth its weight in gold. 

3. Going with an unrealistic price

Arguably the most common mistake sellers make is to list their home at an unrealistic price. Yes, you have put a lot of time and effort into your property and you want this to be accurately reflected in its sales figure. However, it is all too easy to set an unrealistic figure, the type that won’t generate any interest. 

What if you go with a price that’s too low? Fortunately, this isn’t something you should worry about too much. In theory, a low price is going to make people take notice, and it will lead to multiple offers. As the bids go up, you could even be left with an offer that sits above your property’s actual market value. Plus, if an offer comes in that you deem too low, you have the power to refuse. 

4. Trying to sell during the winter

You can put your property up for sale any time you want. With that said, there are times during the year which are best for selling – and none of those times involve those winter months. This is particularly the case during the holidays, where people are more preoccupied by the holidays and staying out of the cold weather. 

However, as others decide not to sell during the winter, it means there’s less competition. In certain situations, this can work in your favor. Nevertheless, for the best chance of securing a quick sale and for a fair price, it’s best to wait for the weather to become warmer. 

5. Not being prepared 

You have to prepare your home ready for a sale. If you don’t, you are simply flushing money down the toilet. Think about it: if you display a property that’s cluttered and features visible minor repairs, this is going to leave a poor first impression with potential buyers. 

First of all, begin by cleaning and tidying up your home. If you have too many possessions on display, consider putting these into storage. Mobile storage containers can be used to conveniently store your possessions and deliver them to your new home once everything’s complete. 

After that, tackle any issues that need your attention. Make repairs such as fixing a loose doorknob or replacing loose tiles. Apply a fresh coat of paint on tired, dated walls. Get rid of any lingering odors. While these are relatively small jobs, they can all make a big difference and help create a strong impression with buyers. 

6. A lack of listing photos

In this day and age, buyers begin their home search on the internet. They go to online listing platforms, browse potential houses, and draw up a shortlist before deciding to go further. As for the homes that end up on their shortlist, they all have one thing in common: a great set of listing photos. 

It’s important that you join them and produce great photos of your home. Aside from being taken with a high-quality camera, these pictures should be produced during the day to ensure your rooms are lit up by ample natural light. Remember to showcase the best assets of your property. 

Also don’t skimp on the number of photos you use – people want to see as much as they can of your home. You may even consider filming a video tour. 

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