Note from Cathy: Our next guest post while I’m out on vacation is by Andrew, who gives some great advice if you are thinking of selling your home.
It may not be easy to sell your home especially when the property market is getting unpredictable. Before putting up your home up for sale, it is imperative that you first understand and learn from the common mistakes local home sellers commit. Knowing about them could help you avoid committing the same.
It is not easy to sell a home. But it may not be too difficult as well. You could possibly sell your house at an ideal price and sooner if you would avoid committing the common blunders according to expert property sellers. Here are five of those blunders you should avoid.
Mistaking previous appraisals for the current market value
It is a big mistake not to get the most updated estimate of the property prior to its sale. The real estate market is moving constantly. The actual and current valuation of your property may not be accurate today especially if the appraisal was conducted more than 6 months to 12 months ago. Your property-for-sale could be priced lower or higher today compared to the recent valuation.
Not getting a sworn valuation
A sworn market valuation could provide you with the best and most accurate pricing structure for your property. You surely would not want to spend thousands of dollars on advertising your home at a very expensive and unreasonable price (which would not attract any buyer). Prospective buyers surely would also run their own valuation of your property. Make sure you get a valuation from independent valuers to make sure the price obtained is fair and accurate. Most agents are also knowledgeable in valuing properties, but they may have hidden agendas for setting prices.
Selling at auction
Putting your home at an auction would only put pressure to yourself. Many experts assert that auctions only condition sellers’ minds to accept low prices for their properties. Do not easily give in if your agent is convincing you to join an auction. Even the ‘dummy bidding trick’ (a practice that is aimed at setting higher prices for properties for sale) is not recommended.
Setting selling price too high
Many home sellers end up not finding good buyers for their properties because they set sale prices too high. You surely are tempted to set a high price range for your home because you intend to negotiate it a little down from there. The result: good buyers who really want to buy the property could be instantly turned off by the very expensive tag price.
Setting selling price too low
On the other hand, do not set a price that is too low for your property. If you succeed in selling your home without proper valuation, you might forever be wondering if you could have possibly sold it at a much higher price. Actual valuation of the home might reveal you surely could have done so.
Lastly, intend to sell your home to a buyer who you think would take care of the property. It is ideal if you sell at a good price. But it could be better if you sell to the right buyer. Good luck.
Andrew has contributed to numerous real estate blogs. He specializes in refinancing solutions for both consumers and businesses.
