In 2021, many houses remained on the market for about 39 days, from listing to closing. So, if you’re in a situation where you need to sell your house fast, you can’t wait that long. You need to know how you can achieve a faster sale.
Selling your fast home cuts down stress and helps avoid changes in the housing market. It helps to quickly free up the tied capital to be used for other profitable businesses. You keep the risks of buyers getting cold feet or their financing falling through at bay.
If you take the right steps, you can sell your home faster and move on with your life in no time. Keep reading to learn ten tips for selling your home fast.
1. Clean and Declutter
Your home looks bigger, and its unique features stand out best when neat and organized. Clean and declutter it as soon as you decide to sell it.
Get a storage unit and pack items that make your house messy and cramped. This creates an inviting home and improves its interior appeal. Also, it allows buyers to move through your house without bumping into anything.
Organize your closets and cabinets by giving away or trashing unwanted stuff. Many home buyers consider a home’s storage space before buying. They peek in storage areas to determine if there’s enough storage space for their items.
Get rid of personal stuff like family photos to allow buyers to see and analyze the space properly. They want to picture themselves in your home and visualize how they’ll organize the space. This might be impossible if your house is in a mess.
Do deep cleaning on every room of your house to increase its attractiveness. Hire cleaning professionals to help you if you’re short on time.
2. Select Your Selling Strategy
You need to learn and implement an effective selling strategy to sell your home fast. It influences whether homebuyers will buy from you or your competitors.
When listing your house, you have several selling strategies to choose from. You can opt for sale by owner (FSBO), a real estate agent or other selling tactics.
If you choose the FSBO selling approach, you gain control over the sales process. Your list and price the property, do marketing and decide when and to who it’s sold. You juggle contract paperwork and negotiate escrow timelines to ensure a successful sale.
With this approach, you save big bucks on agents’ commissions. You don’t have to pay the 3% commission to your agent and the buyer’s agent.
You’ll pay the commissions but enjoy a hassle-free selling experience if you hire an agent. Agents list properties, market, negotiate, sign contracts and close sales on your behalf. They sell your home fast because they know the ins and outs of the process.
Other alternative ways you can consider when selling your house include;
Selling to an investor: it’s an ideal option if you want to sell your property as-is
Selling to a developer: suitable to sellers whose homes have severe damages
Selling at an auction: good if you want to experience competitive bidding
Are you wondering, “How do I bypass the preparation required to sell my house fast?” If so, consider the above tactics.
3. Hire the Right Real Estate Agent
Working with an agent is a valid route for selling a home fast. However, you should hire an agent with experience and extensive market knowledge.
Experienced agents understand the current trends and conditions in real estate markets. They know how mortgage interest rates and unemployment can impact the market. They have strong negotiation skills and offer pricing and home staging advice.
To find the best agent, obtain referrals from the people you trust first. Then, research them and interview them to know them better. Compare your potential candidates and select the perfect one.
Hire a local agent with a proven track record of sales. Ensure they’re good communicators and will be available during the selling process. They must have tech-savviness to market your property and communicate with customers online.
4. Price to Sell
Every homeowner wants to optimize returns from their home sale. But pricing determines how fast you’ll sell your house, so you need to be realistic.
If you overprice your property, many buyers will opt for affordable options. This makes your home spend more time in the market and decreases its value.
Underpricing makes potential buyers doubtful about your home’s condition. To expedite your house selling process, price it competitively.
To set the best price for your home, do the following;
- start with your Zestimate
- review comparable of recently sold homes
- review expired listings in your area and gain insights on pricing
- consider price banding
- avoid obscure and century pricing
- price for online search ranges
If you face difficulties finding the best price point, hire a professional agent. They understand the current housing market and can set the best price for your house. They know the current buying trends and can provide insights on how your home compares to others.
If you overprice your property when listing, don’t hesitate to cut the price. Set a timeline for price reduction and commit to it.
5. Take Care of Quick Repairs
When selling your house fast, you’re in a time crunch. You don’t have time for over-renovating, so focus on minor repairs.
Survey your house and list everything that’s defective or broken out. Be keen not to leave any damage that buyers can spot when touring your house. This might discourage them from buying your property and looking for better choices.
The easy fixes that you can take care of before listing your home include;
- fixing loose tiles and tightening leaky faucets
- tightening doorknobs and handles
- repainting marred or dark walls
- replacing worn or stained carpets
- replacing old drapes and window coverings
- replacing broken windows and damaged roofing systems
- changing dated ceiling fans and light fixtures
Remember, battered furniture can detract from your home’s curb appeal and value. So if your furniture is in bad shape, consider upgrading it before selling.
Also, if you have enough money and time to prepare your home for sale, you can;
- purchase latest appliances
- install new hardware on bathroom and kitchen cabinets
- Apply a fresh coat of paint inside
Also, you can redo the caulk around the sinks and tub.
6. Improve Your Curb Appeal
Making a good first impression is a foolproof way to sell your house fast. Hence, you need to boost your home’s curb appeal to make it more beautiful.
Your home’s exterior is the first thing a buyer sees about your house. So you should make it look tidy, inviting and well-maintained. Also, it should blend with the surrounding neighborhood to improve your home’s cohesion.
To amp up your house’s curb appeal, you should do the following;
- planting flowers
- trimming shrubs, hedges, and overgrown tree branches
- sweeping away spider webs and debris from windows, porches, and eaves
- painting the front door
- replacing broken lights and mailboxes
- pressure washing your walkways and driveways
With all these, your home becomes alive and welcoming. A tidy exterior cues potential buyers that your house has been taken good care of.
You can hire a professional landscaper to quicken the amping of your home’s appeal.
7. Consider Home Staging
Home staging involves organizing your home to make it more appealing to buyers. It helps sell your home faster and achieve the highest sale value. It creates a good first impression and increases the listing views.
Staging also makes your house stand out in the market, making the selling process much easier. It highlights your home’s unique features and distracts from the less desirable ones.
Some home staging tips when selling include;
- cleaning, decluttering, and depersonalizing
- refreshing rooms with reflecting colors
- renovating your bathroom and kitchen
- reworking your room’s layout
- adding new accessories and decorative items
- adding pops of color for personality
- using real plants for staging to add a welcoming scent to your home
Also, you can get an aromatic lavender soap for the bathroom to add fragrance and freshness. To speed up the staging process, hire an experienced stager to help you.
8. Hire a Professional Photographer
Many home buyers research online to identify the best properties to invest in. They visit the sellers and websites to view their galleries and make choices. You might not get a buyer if you don’t have quality and clear photos indicating your home’s features.
Snapping your home’s photos isn’t as easy as you may think. The photos should include your home’s best features to make it look warm and attractive. They should also soften the house’s flaws to give it a brilliant look in the listing.
Hire a professional photographer to take quality photos that’ll attract many customers. They ensure proper lighting when taking photos to enhance clarity. Also, they offer a 3D virtual house tour to capture all the house details.
9. Consider Sales Incentives
Selling might be difficult and time-intensive if your home has many unwanted features. But you can ease the task by offering sales incentives to sweeten the deal. This is also good if you’re selling in a slow market.
Some of the sales incentives you can offer include;
- paying some or all the closing costs
- offering upfront repair or improvement credits
- including things like modern appliances
Also, you can offer a home warranty that provides repair services for the home’s systems.
10. Promote Your House
Though your agent is responsible for marketing your property, help them do the task. Post the house photos on your social media platforms and share them with friends and family. Ask them to help you spread the word about your home and link you to potential buyers.
Send the listing to your homeowners’ association email list and ask them to share the news. Remember, the more people know about your sale, the higher the chances of getting good buyers.
You Now Know How to Sell Your House Fast
Selling a home can be overwhelming and time-intensive. It becomes even more stressful if you’re on a time crunch. Fortunately, there are several ways to expedite the house selling process.
Do you want to sell your house fast? At Bigger Equity, we got you covered. We buy houses fast to help you move forward with your future plans.
Contact us today to get a free quote.