Sometimes, you just need to trust the professionals. While there are many online resources that can help you to sell your home without an agent, it’s often best to be better safe than sorry. Their experience and ability will help you in ways that will be simply impossible to do alone.
Your Selling Strategy
First of all, your real estate agent is going to know how things work. They’re going to be familiar with the local market. This is hugely important, since every local market is distinct. While it is true that all markets respond to national or global trends, those trends will manifest differently everywhere. Your agent will know how to take that information and create a selling strategy. This can include (but is not limited to) the price range of how low you are willing to go, the demographics you’re looking to probably sell to, and how you can go about marketing the house. Last but not least, the agent will know where and how to list the house.
Accurately Pricing Your Home
Before you get an agent, you’re probably going to want to hire someone to do an appraisal of the home. This way, you can get an accurate, unbiased, third-party estimation of the value of the property. A professional appraisal means that important details you may have missed can be noticed and considered. With the information from that appraisal, along with their knowledge of the market, your agent can help you decide how to start pricing your home – along with a range of flexibility for future negotiation. Your starting price can say a lot about the condition of your home, so don’t treat it lightly.
Necessary Preparation
A home needs to be prepped for sale. The extent of this preparation will depend a lot on the condition of the interior and exterior of your home. It can include cleaning, decluttering, depersonalization, and repairs that range from mild cosmetics to serious renovation. Some repairs might significantly impact the value of the home. Cleaning and repainting the interiors, on the other hand, will make the inside of the house a lot more attractive to potential buyers during the open house, although it won’t change its value directly on paper.
It’s not impossible to sell your house alone. If you can afford the wasted time, effort, and money on a process that may or may not reward you for your hard work – then go for it. But in the vast majority of cases, the small percentage of the sale that agents require as a commission fee is well worth the cost.
Check out this article on what you should find out before buying a home!