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Fortunately for home sellers, the real estate process has gotten much faster than it used to be. In previous decades, selling a home could take months. Wet signatures were required on all documents; there was no DocuSign. Thankfully, we are here in the future. Home sales happen quicker than ever now. Especially in high-demand areas, close of escrow can take as little as 2-3 weeks. How can home sellers ensure things don’t take forever?
Here, we unlock 10 secrets to selling your home quickly, regardless of market conditions.
1. Pricing It Right
Overpricing your home from the start could mean instantly shooting yourself in the foot. However, that does not mean you should undersell your property either. The idea is to attract multiple offers. That way, you can choose the one with the best price and terms. Once you have a few offers, you can decide which one best fits your timeline.
Most offers will have different close of escrow timeframes. For example, in most real estate markets, they can range from 21 days – 45 days. 21 versus 45 days is a huge difference. Price your home fairly to generate enough offers in the hopes of finding one with a shorter escrow.
2. Virtual Tour
Many home buyers are lazy and will not make it off of the couch to walk through your open house. In addition to hosting an in-person open house, creating a virtual tour of your property can help you sell it much faster. Nowadays, people shop online for everything, including houses.
Aside from scrolling through photos on Zillow, engage with potential buyers through a virtual experience of your property. Virtual tours can help convert potential buyers into actual offers. And again, the more offers that you receive, the better chance you’ll get at receiving one that can close quickly.
3. Talk to Neighbors
Many home sellers are afraid to tell their neighbors that they are moving – most of the reasons are understandable. However, if selling your home quickly is the top priority, it can be worthwhile. Think about the neighbors that you initially wanted to avoid telling because they are frequent gossipers and will tell the entire nation.
Flip the script in your head about them, and picture them as free brand ambassadors for your listing that don’t require a bird dog fee. When you see a neighbor telling everyone that your home is for sale, it’s a great sign that your house will sell quickly. The more chatter going on about your fresh listing hitting the market, the sooner you’ll find a buyer.
4. Highlight the Highlights
Don’t be shy when showing off your property’s best features. For example, if there is a new in-ground pool, take several professional photos of it for the listing. You can even throw a Go Pro in it as part of your virtual tour! Just make sure the bottom of your pool is clean before creating submerged content for your listing.
A property with features that other nearby ones don’t have is helpful when trying to sell a house quickly. Exclusivity will likely attract more buyers and generate more offers. Show off all of the unique things that your home has going for it in order to sell it fast.
5. One-Up the Competition
In regard to marketing your home, it’s important to one-up the competition. If all other listings have open houses, virtual tours, and drone aerial footage, it is usually a smart idea to do all of that and more. Additional marketing efforts – when executed effectively – will help you sell your home quickly. Investing in more marketing strategies may feel like a frustrating expense at first. However, it’s important to remind yourself that it’s part of the investment of trying to sell your home fast.
6. Look for Cash Offers
Cash offers typically close quicker than when a buyer is financing the home. Naturally, it takes time for a mortgage to be fully approved by a lender. This is one of the longest parts of the home-selling process. Unfortunately, it also leads to many deals falling apart because the buyer’s financing does exactly that – falls apart. Cash offers are liquid, enabling quicker closes and faster home sales. Real estate investors are more well-known for making cash offers.
7. Don’t Over-Negotiate Repairs
Negotiating repairs is smart in many cases. However, sometimes both buyers and sellers will get caught up in the negotiation process. Negotiating over repairs and credits following the home inspection can turn into a multi-day process. Eventually, deals can fall apart due to large disagreements over repairs. Put your ego aside, be reasonable, and be firm where needed, but don’t over-negotiate repairs to save a few dollars when it’s not really necessary.
8. Sell As-Is
Selling a house completely as-is will be one of your quickest routes to the closing table. This helps avoid major hiccups that can delay (or derail) a transaction. Home inspections, termite inspections, and due diligence walk-throughs go to the wayside when selling a property this way. If speed is your concern, consider advertising the listing ‘as-is’. Depending on the actual condition of the property, this can dramatically speed up the time it will take to sell.
9. Include Appliances
If you are expecting most of your offers to come from owner-occupant buyers, consider including the appliances. Especially if the primary buyer for your home is a family with kids that wants to move directly into a turnkey property, your best bet is to include the existing appliances. The easier you make it for buyers to move in, the faster you will be able to sell your home. Quick home sales are all about creating the least amount of friction possible between you and the buyer.
10. Don’t Ask for Rent Back
As tempting as it may be, don’t ask for rent back if you’re trying to sell your home quickly. Again, it comes down to avoiding friction. Make the home sale process seamless for buyers. That will help you generate the most (and strongest) offers possible. Then you’ll have more negotiating power and leverage if you have more offers. Achieving a quick home sale gets easier with more offers that come across your table.
Your Agent is Essential
Working with an expert agent is critical when selling your home quickly. Discuss with your agent your ideal timeline and goal. Interview multiple agents to determine who will be the best candidate to get your home sold. Your agent can make all the difference, so rely on an expert you can trust.