Answer: Hire a Realtor. Realtor's know the market and how to handle a listing. Rely on an expert for advise on selling your home fast and effectively. A Realtor is someone you can rely on to schedule showings, conduct open houses, market your house and negotiate the right price with qualified buyers for your house. Did you know that merely a 10% of homes are sold by homeowners? And that this number is dropping in today's market? It is also a fact that Realtors have more connections, experience, techniques, training that will net HIGHER offers. Buyers also trust transactions made through a Realtor more than dealing directly with a homeowner.
Here are a few suggestions I would make to help sell your home in this market:
1. Spruce up your curb appeal. Invest in beautiful plants and mulch. Clear away vegetation blocking front door or path to door for a cleaner look. Mow the lawn & trim bushes. Remove evidence of pets.
2. Power wash the outside. Remove dead bugs and moss.
3. Retouch door trims and window soles
4. If possible, and if you have the appropiate space, buy a hammock. A hammock can provide prospect buyers with the feeling of serenity and psychological stability. It may affect positively the buyer as the thought of owning a peaceful home is very desirable in this tough economic times.
5. Clean out the clutter. Give your house an open and fresh look. Store as much as you can in boxes and place these boxes in a storage place. You may not notice the smell because you are used to it, but if you have pets, a smoker in the family, or a dirty house with mold, your home does smell. Get rid of all offending odors or your prospective buyers won't even look past the front door. Put some cinnamon sticks to simmer or bake cookies to put that cookie smell in the air before a showing. When a buyer comes, he or she will INSTANTLY connect with the scent of your house! Make this scent pleasant to help the buyer connect with the house.
6. Retouch indoor walls paint. Paint your walls a neutral color, the lighter the better as it makes each room look larger. The most often used areas of the house can always have another coat of paint. Another coat of paint helps in adding brightness and making the room more livable and more comfortable to spend time in.
7. Light. Replace burned light bulbs. Make sure all lamps are in working order and place lamps in rooms that lack natural lights. This will make the house shows much better.
8. Be a critic of your own house. Impersonalize your house, try removing personal pictures from your refrigerator for a neater look. Sellers should try to see their house through the eyes of the pickiest buyers. The closest your house looks like a model house, the easiest is to the buyer to imagine their own furniture and decor in your dwelling.
9. Price it right. Don't overprice your home. If it is too high, it won't sell. In addition, homes that have been on the market too long scare buyers away.
10. Offer incentives. In this market, many First Time Homebuyers are taking advantage of the declining house values and large inventory to finally make the step into homeownership. There is also a great incentive offered by the Government that consists of a maximum of $8000 Homebuyer Tax Credit to purchase a house. This tax credit varies depending on your income, price of the home and it is only available to first time homebuyers. Although this is a great incentive for first time homebuyers, unfortunately this tax credit is a refund that it is received AFTER the house is purchased. That said, many first time homebuyers don't have enough money to cover for down payment and costs required at closing. Sellers, with the advise of a good Realtor, can offer assistance to cover buyer closing costs to help sell their house, not only to first timers but to recurrent buyers to make their house more appealing to a buyer. There are other incentives, also known as "negotiating tactics" that a Realtor can consider to help Sellers sell their homes. Other common incentives include: decorating allowance, home warranties, including household items or additional appliance to the purchase price.
Contact Jackie Ovad today to sell your home effectively! Ph: 410-599-9305 www.jackieovad.com. Yo Hablo Espanol. Servicing: Reisterstown, Owings Mills, Pikesville, Garrison, Stevenson, Randallstown, Gwynn Oak, Windsor Mill, Catonsville, Halethorpe, Sykesville, Finksburg, Westminster, Hanover...add many more. Contact me today.
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