So you’ve decided to sell your house. If you’ve never sold a house before, this can be intimidating. While the typical American homeowner will move about every five to seven years, the fact is that while the moving process in itself can be frustrating, selling a house can be much more so if it’s not done correctly. And if you’re skeptical about the traditional process of listing a house and having it sold by a realtor, you may already be stressed. Perhaps you’re off-put by the real estate agencies in your area; maybe their commission rates are too high on top of the closing costs that must be paid anyway. Maybe you’ve sold a house through a real estate agency in the past and were displeased by the results. You could even have a house on the market right now and are frustrated by its slow progress. If you want to sell your house fast, working with a real estate agent is not always the answer. Agents vary wildly in terms of their success, and some are definitely more motivated than others. Of course, you’re already motivated to sell your own home. Why not become your own real estate agent? Selling a home or property without a listing agent is an option for virtually everyone, and though it comes with its own unique challenges, it also offers great potential rewards. Let’s look into what you should know about selling your home on your own.
1. Advertising Is Everything
The reason why a lot of people jump to working with real estate agents immediately is that real estate agencies essentially come with their own built-in advertising. But a real estate agency website or catalog is definitely not the only way to advertise a home for sale. There are actually websites made for people attempting to sell their own homes, and a lot of buyers seek out homes that are for sale by owner for specific reasons. After deciding to sell FSBO, as it’s often called, you should join these websites and seek out support from other people attempting to sell on their own, as they may have experiences and tips and tricks that are helpful for your unique situation. You can also advertise your home on these sites, as well as social media in general. Check to see if your local Facebook groups have any rules against advertising your house on their pages. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to advertise your home; you just need to know where to advertise it most efficiently.
2. Considering Selling Your House For Cash
Why would you want to sell your house for cash? Well, it can make the sales process a lot simpler for you. Rather than dealing with the traditional process of closing, which would require you likely agreeing to make certain repairs before your house sells, as well as waiting for buyers to get mortgage loans. Selling a house for cash means that you get the entire amount for your home upfront, which is often much easier on you when you’re selling your home as an owner. There is less of a risk of something falling through, and you can know what you’re getting without worrying about investing in the house any further. When listing a house, you can make the call regarding whether or not you should entertain cash offers, or seek them out solely. Which leads us to our next topic.
3. Seek Out The Right Buyers
When listing a house, you’ll also discover that the more competent and prepared the buyers are, the easier your sale will be overall. For that reason, you may want to seek out house flipping companies. These companies are more likely to pay with cash, for one thing, as they’ll have the budget to buy houses outright. But they also handle these types of sales on a professional basis, which generally speaking often makes it easier for less experienced sellers to work with them.
No matter what, listing a house on your own presents some challenges the first time around. But with those challenges come great rewards, and you can ultimately get a lot from listing your home on your own.