After you decided you want to sell your house, there is one question that will probably cross your mind straight away. Do you want to do it with or without an agent? A real estate agent could provide you a helping held with this process, but hiring one can be very pricy. After long thinking, you might come to a conclusion you should do it on your own, for whatever reason. Nevertheless, keep on your mind that this is a long process and you’ll have to plan it in detail.
Yes, selling a house without an agent can be a challenging thing to do. But it is not impossible either. In case you live in Memphis and you’re considering selling your house privately, you’re in the right place. Here are 7 tips that can make this process easier for you.
1. Set the Right Price
An agent is usually the one who sets the price of a real estate. If you decided to skip them and you’d like to sell your house on your own, make sure you understand the market. Firstly, you should research the market. That will help you decide how to set the price for your house.
What we recommend is to visit a few websites and check the prices of similar properties. After you painted a picture in your head, it will be easier to move further.
The right price is very important since setting it wrong could make the process move slower than you’d like. Keep on your mind that it should be neither too high nor too low. If it’s too high you could wait for months (or even years) before you find the right buyer. On the other hand, if you set your price too low you might end up with less money than you could make.
2. Sell Your House to a Home Buying Company
In case you want to speed up the process and sell your home quickly, your sales approach might change. Doing everything on your own isn’t always a good way to go. It doesn’t matter that you’re following the steps and doing everything the best you can. Nobody can guarantee you will sell your house as fast as you’d like. And that’s the reason you should start thinking in another direction.
There are many home buying companies in Memphis such as www.faircashdeal.com that can buy the house from you the way it is. This means you won’t need to renovate your house and spend extra money on tiding it up. You can finalize your sale in just a few days, without stress and time-consuming activities. If you are time-limited, this might be the best possible option for you.
3. Start Advertising Your Property
If you have a plan to advertise your property on some of the websites, you want your house to stand out. You can achieve that with some good, high-quality pictures. Consider hiring a professional photographer who knows how to catch some good angles.
Try to write an interesting description of your property and provide some valuable information as well. Keep on your mind that you only have a few seconds to impress the potential buyers while they are scrolling through the internet.
You may also consider going for an ad in local newspapers. Telling everyone you know you’re selling your house isn’t a bad idea at all. The more people know about it – the sooner the news will spread. Eventually, go for a good yard sign that will be visible and effective.
4. Consider Hosting an Open Home
An open home is a great idea when you are trying to sell a house. This is an opportunity for everyone interested in buying your property to take a better look at it. Our advice for you is to skip working days and try to organize them during the weekends. That way, more people will be available to attend. Make sure you get contact information from all of the people who were there and ask for their feedback in the following days.
During these events, you should get ready for answering awkward questions. “Why do you want to sell the house” and “What do you think about the neighbors” are just some of them. Good communication is the key. Give your best to make a great first impression and be a good host.
5. Schedule Individual Property Viewings
If you are lucky enough to have many people interested in your house, there is one more thing you’ll have to arrange. Besides organizing open homes, scheduling individual property viewings is another part of the selling process. Try to be very attentive to your potential buyers and arrange these viewings at a time that suits them the best. If you are busy, ask a friend or a family member to help you and show them around the house.
6. Learn How to Negotiate
After you’ve set a price for the listing, you should ask yourself if that price is the final one. Decide in advance what is the amount of money you wouldn’t go below during the negotiations. When you don’t have a real estate agent you have to go through this negotiation part by yourself. And yes, the buyer will come with his offer too. The rule is that his price is almost always lower than yours.
Sometimes this means you’ll have to turn someone down, but don’t let that discourage you. If the tone of the conversation was friendly, you never know. Maybe the buyer will change his mind after some time and come back with another offer. Even if that doesn’t happen you are richer for one more experience. And maybe the next negotiation will be the successful one.
7. Make Your House “sellable”
If you’re selling your house privately, you want to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible. You don’t need to invest a lot of money on it, you just have to find a way to make it tidy and beautiful. Make some small repairs, paint the walls, and add some refreshing details. In the era of Pinterest, creative home decor ideas are just a few clicks away.
Try to figure out what you’d like to see in your house if you were a buyer and then go for it. If you make a good starting point, everything will run much more smoothly.
CONCLUSION: Not hiring a real estate agent when selling a property can make some things more complicated. But that doesn’t mean you cannot do it on your own. If you follow these seven steps and give your best, you won’t need to pay thousands of dollars for an agent to sell a house. Anyway, if you have a short time frame for selling, we recommend considering a home buying company. That way you’ll finish everything much sooner and be ready to move on.
