Not many people were buying homes after 2008 Economic crisis, but three years ago, the world’s real estate market have completely turned around. At the moment, the prices of real estate in major metro areas in United States and Australia are rising at a very fast pace. The development of real estate business is also followed by the historically low interest rates for mortgage loans, so if you’re planning to sell your home, now it’s definitely the right time. In spite of these very favorable conditions, many sellers still aren’t able to maximize the equity when their homes hit the market. They often make costly mistakes that drastically decrease the price of their property. In this article, we’ve listed some of the most common and the most avoidable home-selling mistakes.
Not hiring professionals
Many people try to sell home by themselves in order to save commission money. They avoid hiring professionals even for home inspection and renovation services. If they even manage to sell their home in the first couple of months of listing, they’ll never use the benefits of a growing house market and they won’t be able to save a penny on real estate agent’s commission costs. If you want to sell your home at a favorable price, you’ll need to invest some money during the process. Hire a skillful real estate agent and let the professionals do their work.
Not conducting home inspection
Home inspection is a very affordable way to determine your home’s weak spots and to learn how to increase its price with minimal investments. Services of home inspection companies are even cheaper in smaller cities and towns. If your home is in great shape, you should also conduct an inspection and use the favorable report during a price negotiation.
Mispricing your home
It doesn’t matter whether you’ve over- or underpriced your home, because in both cases you will lose significant amounts of money. Over-priced homes are hard to sell and in some cases people wait for years before realizing their home is worth much less. During this time they pay for utility bills, taxes and home maintenance, which can pile up to tens of thousands of dollars. In order to avoid these issues, you need to conduct a thorough market research and get familiar with the real estate prices in your area.
Refusing to conduct repairs
Small and affordable repairs can drastically increase the price of your home. Fixing things ahead of time is always going to cost you less than letting buyers to see your house in disrepair. This is particularly applicable to old electrical installations. Wiring is prone to deterioration, and it can be subjected to animal gnawing as well, especially if the house has been vacant for a while. So, if you’re dealing with exposed, damaged or corroded electrical wires, it is always best to call an emergency electrician and let them deal with the issue. Buyers and their agents know that these fixes are cheap, but they will use every issue to lower the property price. Some sellers avoid making even the least expensive improvements. They are listing homes full of junk and clutter, which drastically affects the sale value.
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Selling an empty house
Although you should get rid of all junk and clutter before listing your home, you shouldn’t sell it empty. Homes need to be dressed and staged for the moment when potential buyers arrive. Empty home makes buyers feel empty and they won’t be able to imagine how they would decorate the walls or arrange the furniture layout. Of course, you don’t need to go out and buy new furniture, but don’t remove your stuff from the house before you list it and show it to potential buyers. If you don’t have furniture or you’ve already emptied the house and sent your couches, chairs and cabinets on a cross-country trek visit the local store and buy a few good looking and affordable furniture pieces. It will definitely pay off in the end.
If you’ve decided to list your home by yourself, you should be able to create an intriguing ad with great visuals. Don’t just take a photo of your house with your 5 pixel phone camera on a cloudy day. More than 90% of home buyers start their search online and they don’t like looking at the blurry and dark photos. If you don’t know how to use a DSLR camera, contact a professional photographer and schedule a photo session of your home. This way you’ll attract more potential buyers and achieve greater leverage.
