10 STEPS - How to sell your home for the BEST PRICE possible?
1. DECIDE WHEN TO SELL
To ensure you sell your home quickly and at the best price, list your home between February and June or Between September and October. Seasonal trends affect the supply and demand dynamics of the housing market.
During the snowy days of November and December, most buyers take a break and focus on upcoming holidays and winter vacations. Starting in late January, more people again consider purchasing a home. Between February and May, buyers often enter a frenzy of competition, as the warm weather makes it easy to shop for a home and parents want to finalize their new home purchase with plenty of time before the next school term. In June, July and August, as many take summer vacations, the number of buyers usually declines. September through October is the last period that favors sellers before the snowy winter holidays approach.
2. CHOOSE THE BEST REAL ESTATE AGENT
Interview two or three real estate agents; do not simply hire someone because he or she promises the highest price. Ask each realtor which homes he or she has sold in your area, what the realtor charges in fees, and how the realtor will market your home. Read customer reviews.
What qualities should you look for in a good real estate agent?
1) Their level of education and expertise.
Just as you demand that your doctor, attorney, and financial advisor be a well-educated and trained professional, you should also demand this of the person who will help sell your home. You should have confidence that your AGENT understands all the legal, tax, and financial issues involved in the sale of your home. Seek out agents with high levels of education and experience.
2) The level of marketing and staging services they provide you.
In return for you choosing to work with a particular real estate agent, that agent should dedicate a large amount of time and advertising dollars to your listing to ensure maximum exposure. Ask the agent how much he or she usually spends for marketing and staging a listing. Get their promises in writing, and ask for a written marketing plan to ensure your home receives the marketing it deserves.
3) Someone you trust and have a good rapport with.
Pick the person you can envision spending time with and whose company you will enjoy over the next few months.
3. HOME REPAIR AND IMPROVE
Repair and improve the features that will give you the highest return.
Improvements that will give you the highest return on investment include steam cleaning the carpets, painting the interior and exterior of the house, washing the windows, overhauling the lawn, hiring a home-cleaning service, pressure washing the deck, cleaning the gutters, and renovating a severely outdated kitchen or bathroom.
Major repairs, such as adding a new wood deck, adding a room, or remodeling an entire house, generally have under a 100% return on investment, and it would take years to recoup the expenses of these items. Therefore, these major projects are better left to the buyer. Some agents have tested local contractors, cleaners, repair people, painters, electricians, etc. numerous times for their listings. Ask your agent for good, cost-effective recommendations.
4. MAKE YOUR HOME'S INTERIOR SHINE
Your home will need to impress prospective buyers all on its own. Stage your home with high-end furniture. Fill each room with natural light. If it is difficult to stage the home with new furniture, because you are living inside the house, clear the clutter from a crowded space and consult with your realtor to make it look its best to all prospective buyers.
If you decide to stage your home, avoid using average stagers or real estate agents who like to decorate. Most real estate agent in New York City recycle a few staging companies, which is why the interiors of most open houses you attend always look similar with the same type of furniture.
Nice staging can very much affect the final price of the home. Well-staged homes sell for 6–10% more than those that were poorly staged, and they are sold within half the period required for a poorly staged home. I recently help listed a townhouse in Upper East Side, and my own interior design team staged and transformed the space into a jaw-dropping luxury home. Hire professional interior designer or stager to merchandise your beautiful property.
Do what it takes to ensure your home photographs well and looks its best in person, grabbing the attention of every potential buyer who walks through the door.
For more information on staging, please visit staging page.
5. GET PROFESSIONAL HOME PHOTOS
With 92% of homebuyers using the Internet as part of their home search, photography is a critical factor in the selling price of your home and in how quickly it sells.
Professional and beautiful photos are used in a variety of marketing materials and they serve to attract potential buyers to encourage them to attend open houses.
6. PRICE IT RIGHT
You really only have one chance to effectively price your property, and that is when it first goes on the market.
The level of interest of potential buyers and other agents is highest right when your property enters the market. An underpriced property will attract a huge amount of attention and a flurry of interest will develop, generally resulting in multiple offers and a sale price above the original list price.
However, for a home over $3.5 million, I generally advise sellers to price at market value, because there may not be multiple buyers writing offers at that price. If there is only one buyer writing an offer, underpricing would be a bad idea, because that buyer will submit an offer at the list price, which is lower than the actual market value.
An overpriced property will be quickly reviewed by potential buyers and agents, and it is likely that the property will stagnate on the market. Over-priced listings generally sell for below what the property would have gotten if initially priced properly.