Category Archives: Seller’s Resources

The holiday season is a tough time to consider moving. Many people considering selling their home don’t want that disruption during the holidays and many buyers are too distracted and busy with holiday related activities to spend their weekends or evenings shopping for houses. However, there are things you should be doing now if you are considering buying or selling your home after the holidays. You may be busy, but your Realtor is probably not. Real estate professionals’ workload slows down this time of year. Perfect time to get some of your prep work done! Get a Comparative Market Analysis… Read More »

Property Disclosure Basics Historically, a buyer who made the decision to purchase a specific home assumed all of the risks associated with homeownership.  Those risks included things that they did not know about the home they were purchasing.  Thankfully, today’s buyers have learned from the past. Assumed risk continues, but ignorance has fallen by the wayside. To protect consumer interests, many states and localities have enacted laws requiring the current homeowner to complete legal disclosures about the property that is for sale. The actual contents of each disclosure form vary, depending on the area.  But generally, laws require homeowners to… Read More »

Home Inspectors’ Top Ten Findings As a buyer, you have probably heard over and over again how important a home inspection is in the home-buying process.  Home inspectors need to be certified and come with many good recommendations.  The security and health of your family depend on their attention to detail and ability to see things that are not visible to most other people. When you are preparing to purchase a new home, the information provided in a home-inspection report is critical for protecting your family.  Here are the top ten findings of home inspectors, and what can be done… Read More »

How Divorce Affects Your Home Sale During a divorce, the couple’s marital home is one of the most pressing issues that needs to be addressed.  If the couple purchased the home with the intention of living there together, the end result is usually selling the home, unless one partner is willing to buy the other partner’s share.  Because divorce is an emotionally tenuous time, selling the family home is a challenging undertaking. The decision to sell a home and the details of the sale itself need to remain completely unemotional.  While this is often a difficult proposition in the middle… Read More »

Is Seller Financing Right for You? Seller financing can be a win-win situation for both the buyer and seller in a real-estate transaction.  As long as the contract is legal and both sides honor their obligations, both parties will find that seller financing is much less costly than traditional financing methods.  In most cases, there is no need for a traditional closing, unless the buyer is using proceeds from a mortgage loan to cover some of the home’s purchase price in addition to the seller financing. The Seller For the seller, offering seller financing is a great way to attract… Read More »

Sell Your Home in a Slowing Market Any real estate agent can tell you that the best possible selling situation is one in which the home seller has to consider ten different bids, resulting in offers that far exceeding the home’s listing price. Unfortunately, sometimes the housing market is not quite so generous to sellers.  Nevertheless, when the housing market takes a dive, it doesn’t mean that the selling price of your home should do the same.  Even when the housing market in your area is not very favorable, it is still possible to get your asking price. In order… Read More »

Should You Remodel Before Selling? Most consumers are tired of receiving mixed advice about prepping their home for sale.  Some realtors may advise you to simply slap on a coat of fresh paint, while others will advise you to replace your kitchen with a more modern and convenient one.  With all of this conflicting advice, how are you supposed to know what to do in order to successfully sell your home? Quite honestly, this is really a matter of opinion and what you think is the best decision for your situation.  For example, if you are considering selling your home… Read More »

Select an Agent to Sell Your Home in a Buyer’s Market First-time home sellers have limited experience working with real estate agents, other than the agent who helped them buy their current home.  For this reason, sellers sometimes do not fully understand the role of a listing agent. A listing agent has one primary responsibility: to market your home not to potential buyers, but rather to other realtors and agents who may have clients interested in homes like yours. Many sellers believe that because the listing agent places the home’s details on the Multiple Listing Services (MLS), his or her… Read More »

What are Sellers’ Costs? Selling a home, very much like buying a home, can be an expensive procedure.  First-time sellers often do not realize the extent of the costs that they may face.  Educated sellers who have done their research are almost always able to significantly reduce the costs that they incur while selling their home. If you are selling your home with the intention of moving to another home or relocating to another city, the first step in the selling process is the same as the first step in the buying process: contact a mortgage lender for a loan… Read More »

Make Your Home Irresistible to Buyers When selling your home is a priority, you need to realize that an ordinary home with ordinary features is not going to grab potential buyers’ attention.  You need to go beyond ordinary and make your home irresistible to every homebuyer.  White ceilings are always preferable.  If time is of the essence and you cannot paint entire rooms, quickly adding coat of white paint to the ceilings can make all the difference in the world. It’s always a good idea to have a clean kitchen, but when you are trying to sell a home you… Read More »

Steps to Follow When Selling Your Home Whether you have accepted a job offer in another part of the country or have decided that it is time to move to a larger (or smaller) home, you will first need to sell your home.  Regardless of whether you have ever sold a home before, you will need to do some research and invest time before listing your home for sale.  Doing your homework will make you a more prepared and better educated home seller.  Your realtor will respect your willingness to be prepared, and buyers will be pleased to learn that… Read More »

Selling a Home in a Hurry Sometimes, life circumstances are out of our control, leaving homeowners with no other alternative. They must sell in a hurry.  If you are among the many sellers who need to act quickly, your realtor will soon become your best friend.  Your realtor will assist you in hastening the paperwork process, completing important documents such as disclosure forms, and listing your home the minute you give him or her permission to do so. Your realtor can also help you pinpoint ways to improve the appearance of your home in order to attract more potential buyers…. Read More »

Successful Home Selling Guide When your goal is to sell your home hassle-free, there is one sure way to make that happen.  Believe it or not, the only thing that you need to do is to understand how the selling process works.  When you have this information, you know what to expect and when to expect it!  There’s nothing worse than being surprised by part of the home-selling process while you’re mid-stream. Making a mistake along the way could cost you a lot!  Here you’ll learn about the step-by-step journey through the home-selling process. The Decision You will face several… Read More »

As a homeowner, you have two important reasons for determining the true value of your home.  The first is so that you can sell your home.  The second is so that you can determine the amount of homeowner’s insurance that you need to carry. Regardless of the reason you want to determine your home’s value, the process is the same.  Hopefully this information will lead you on the path to discovering the true value of your home. Realtors know that, today more than ever, it is critical to place an accurate value on your home before listing it for sale. … Read More »

The best way to increase your home’s value before you sell it is to think like a buyer!  Think back to the time when you were shopping for a new home, or analyze your current experience if you are already looking for your next home.  As a buyer, what features did you look for?  What features attracted you to your current home and helped you to decide that it was the right one for you? When you think about the features that attracted you, remember that others will most likely find them attractive as well.  However, if you have owned… Read More »

As a homeowner, you cannot afford to lose money on the sale of your home simply because you did not take the time to price your home according to its true value.  Under-pricing will leave you full of regret – and overpricing will leave you with a home that has not sold.  Home pricing is a balancing act, because you need to take into consideration not only the true value of the home, but also the local market conditions. Some simple techniques can help you determine the best listing price for your home. These are many of the same things… Read More »