Five Mistakes Made by Home Sellers
Putting a house on the market can turn out to be a challenging experience. Even though you think you are to move, it still is connected with moving on from part of your history. The situation is even more difficult if it is made necessary as a result of a difficult transition such as divorce or separation, losing a job, or any kind of a shift in a family’s financial situation.
In this article we will take a look at common mistakes that that are made by home sellers and how to avoid them.
Not Staying “Visitor Ready”
It is essential when you want to sell a home that it must always look open, inviting, and attractive. You never know when a Realtor will call and say they are in the neighborhood with a client who wants to view the listing immediately. Heaven forbid that a prospective buyer should walk in and find weeks of unwashed laundry, a untidy toilet, or disorganized, cluttered rooms that look better suited to a garage sale than for the kind of relaxed, pleasant daily lifestyle that needs to be the ideal.
Not Being Ready for Showing
When it finally happens that someone wants to view the property, they will want to go right away, or quickly. Making a buyer wait just a few hours may keep them from looking at your place at all, or give them the time to find another place they like better. Since the Realtor will not want you present while the house is being shown, be prepared with a list of places you can go on short notice — going to a neighbor’s house, the library, movie theater, grocery store, or anywhere but there at the house.
Not Completing Your Agreements
When you and the buyer enter into the contract, you may agree to do several things, such as make certain repairs to the home or do something to fix up the landscaping or something else that you overlooked in your cleanup for the sale. Make sure you complete whatever you agreed, or the buyer could walk away from the deal.
Not Being Thorough With Disclosures and Itemization of Material Facts
State laws require you to disclose in writing any and all defects and material facts about your home. Most real estate professionals will tell you it is better to say too much about material facts than to say too little. If the buyer becomes aware of flaws or facts that you knew about, they could walk away from the whole deal or even take you to court.
Asking Too High a Price
Often it seems real estate sellers think they should start out asking for the highest price in the range of possible prices. If the house doesn’t sell quickly, they can simply lower the price a little bit, isn’t that right? Despite the tempting fact that it’s true that the initial price can always be reduced, by the time that happens the house has usually become “old.” People who skipped over your house as too expensive or above their range as they scanned the new listings won’t know to come back and give your home a second look. If you start off by asking a fair price, you’re likely to sell your home much more quickly. Considering that your time has value and the monetary expense of keeping the house on the market, most likely having the right price could make months of difference in the time on the market until the sale is made. Read the rest of this entry »
I moved to Sun City Lincoln Hills in May 2003 from San Rafael. I love the life style of living and working in Lincoln Hills and I specialize in Active Adult Communities in Northern California.