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Selling a home can be challenging, even for an individual who is laser-focused on getting the best price for his or her house. Fortunately, we're here to help you achieve the best-possible results during the home selling journey.
Now, let's take a look at three tips to help you obtain the best price for your residence.
1. Study the Prices of Comparable Residences in Your Area
Your home may seem like it is one of a kind, but there likely are comparable houses in your city or town. If you take a look at the prices of comparable houses in your area, you may be better equipped than ever before to establish a competitive initial asking price for your residence.
Also, studying the prices of comparable residences in your area enables you to see how your house stacks up against the competition. And if you find your home pales in comparison to its rivals, you may want to dedicate time and resources to upgrade your house. That way, you can help your house stand out to potential buyers.
2. Conduct a Home Appraisal
A home appraisal commonly is requested by a buyer after a seller accepts his or her offer to purchase a residence and a property appraisal has been completed. However, it may be beneficial for a seller to conduct a home appraisal, especially if this individual wants to get the optimal price for his or her residence.
By conducting a home appraisal, you can receive expert insights into how much your house is currently worth. Then, you can use your home appraisal results to set an aggressive initial asking price for your residence.
3. Collaborate with a Real Estate Agent
If you are unsure about how to price your residence, you may want to hire a real estate agent. Because if you have a real estate agent at your side, you can quickly and effortlessly accomplish your property selling goals.
First, a real estate agent will meet with you and learn about your residence. This housing market professional next will help you establish a competitive initial asking price for your home that accounts for the current state of the real estate market. A real estate agent then will list your home, promote it to potential buyers and set up home showings and open house events. And if you receive an offer to purchase your residence, a real estate agent can help you review this proposal and decide how to proceed.
Of course, a real estate agent will do everything possible to help you maximize your house sale earnings too. He or she will negotiate with a buyer's agent on your behalf and ensure you can get the best price for your residence – regardless of the current housing market's conditions.
Don't wait to list your home and maximize your home sale profits. Instead, take advantage of the aforementioned home selling tips, and you can boost the likelihood of a fast, profitable property selling experience.
With school loans at an all-time high, and growing for each passing generation, many homeowners are ready to shoulder off any and all debt as quickly as possible. If you’re in this camp and looking to aggressively pay down debt there are a few options available when it comes to paying your mortgage off.
Also known as seller contributions, are where the seller agrees to pay a portion of the closing fees for the buyer. This can include title insurance, inspection fees, and processing fees. If the seller is looking to sell the house quickly they may consider agreeing to seller concessions.
Energy-efficient Mortgage (EEM) was created to help homeowners renovate to add environmentally friendly features to their home. So if you’re looking to install double-pane windows or update insulation this could be the loan for you.
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans offer lower closing costs, smaller down payments, and a fair interest rate.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loans can be applied to homes in rural areas, regardless of if they are a part of a farm. You may qualify to apply for zero down payment and loan payments will be at a fixed rate.
There are also many local programs offered at the state and city level. A quick Google search for loan options for your area should set you in the right direction!
Down the road, you can refinance for a fifteen year home loan instead of thirty. You’ll pay off your loan in roughly half the time and save money on payments towards interest.
You’ll want to check with your lending company first as some have penalties for payments outside of the loan terms. However, if possible, making an extra payment either regularly or time to time will help cut down the overall time it takes to pay off your loan.
For example, you can make one extra mortgage payment each year or tighten up your day to day budget and apply what your savings towards your loan. Many homeowners get creative and take on side gigs to create the extra cash necessary to make additional payments.
If you don’t have that room to flex you can also always apply any bonuses, tax refunds or windfalls that come your way. This also makes a bigger impact when paired with regularly scheduled extra payments.
Aggressive debt payoff strategies aren’t for everyone. And that’s okay! However, if you’re looking to live a debt free life and enjoy your home knowing it’s been paid in total these tactics are for you. With some strategy and creativity, you can find plenty of ways to make the process go quickly and smoothly.
Selling a home takes patience. Especially when you’re balancing your time between settling into your new home, and keeping up with your work and family life. So, when you’ve finally gotten to the point of accepting an offer on your home, you’ll probably breathe a sigh of relief--and you should! However, there are still a few more things that will need to happen and a couple of things to consider before closing the deal on your home sale.
A purchase contract typically includes contingency clauses that are designed to protect the interests of both the buyer and the seller. These clauses mean that the contract is contingent upon the actions being completed before it can be legally valid.
There are three main contingencies that will likely be included in the purchase contract before closing--inspection, financing, and appraisal.
The inspection contingency allows the buyer to have the home inspected by a professional before closing (the time should be specified within the contract, but the inspection should usually occur no more than two weeks after you accept the offer). A home inspection lets the buyer know what to expect in terms of repairs that the home needs now or will need in the near future.
Since the vast majority of buyers will be purchasing their home through a loan, a financing contingency is included to allow the buyer time to secure their mortgage. Getting pre-qualified and pre-approved makes this process easier, but the buyer will still have to finalize and close on their mortgage before their financing is official.
This clause exists to protect the buyer in the event that their mortgage application is denied, ensuring that they aren’t penalized.
The third contingency most often found in purchase contracts is a home appraisal. The buyer will order an appraisal and then the appraiser will reach out to you to find a day to come and value your home.
If the home is then appraised at the amount agreed upon in your contract, this contingency is met. However, if the appraisal comes up lower than the purchase amount, the buyer can renegotiate the price.
Once the appraisal and inspection have been met and financing secured, the buyer will have a chance to do a final walkthrough of your home. The walkthrough usually occurs no more than two days prior to closing on the sale. A walkthrough allows the buyer view the home one last time to ensure that the condition of the home hasn’t drastically changed since the home was inspected or appraised. So, make sure the buyer is aware of any changes you planned to make to the home before closing.
Now you’re ready to close on your home sale. You’ll receive a disclosure form to review (read it carefully!) and sign. Once closing is complete, ownership of the home is officially transferred to the buyer.
While the closing process does include several steps, it’s important to be available and cooperative along the way to ensure a smooth sale and transition into your new home.
