By mikerbrady
Selling a house in Virginia Beach can be a big financial decision. Which makes selling your house by owner an attractive option to save on realtor commissions, but are you truly prepared for the work involved to get your home sold? Homeowners should understand there is a learning curve to selling a house yourself; after all, selling a house isn’t something you do every day. To sell a house by owner can be a difficult road to navigate, requiring determination and drive along the way. So is selling your house by owner worth it? Continue reading to find out.
Choosing to sell your house by owner involves listing, marketing, and hopefully selling your home without the help of a real estate agent. The motivation behind selling a house by owner is to save on realtor commissions, which can average about 6 percent of the home’s sale price. Selling by owner also lets you control the situation by cutting out the middleman, allowing you to deal with buyers and their agents.Â
Going the route of selling by owner does require time and patience on your part. Some of your responsibilities would include:
How you go about selling a home on your own can be overwhelming. With that understanding, let’s look at the steps involved in how to sell your home by owner.Â
If your house is listed too high, you may deter potential buyers from taking a look. Listing a home right from the get-go is a good idea and probably the most crucial step in selling, regardless of whether you sell with or without an agent.Â
To get a sense of what your house is worth, you could hire a real estate appraiser, which would cost you anywhere from $300-$400 dollars, which adds an extra expense to selling on your own.
Also, be cautious when looking at popular websites for your property’s value. Don’t rely too heavily on these sites’ estimates of your home’s worth. These sites can be inaccurate on your value assessment. They tend not to consider recently sold homes in your area that are comparable to the size, age, and condition of your listing.Â
When you sell by owner, your home will need to be in tip-top condition for showings and listing photos. Below are some of the best tips to get your house ready to sell:
Declutter- a house is no longer home when you decide to sell. It has become a product on the market. Making it neat and tidy goes a long way when selling a house. Cleaning and decluttering can involve a lot of time and effort if you have quite a bit of stuff to go through that’s piled up over the years. Usually, people go about this one of two ways, by either getting rid of clutter and junk and selling it or renting a storage unit to store personal items until your house sells. Unfortunately, both involve your time and an extra expense to selling your home.Â
Clean– Make sure your house is squeaky clean. Dust, clean the windows, vacuum, mop the floors, and make sure your place smells good, especially if you have pets. Having a clean house shows a potential buyer you take good care of the property and maintain it. If it’s been some time since your home has had a deep cleaning, you may be better off hiring a cleaning company. Though tedious, be prepared to clean every time a potential buyer walks through the door to leave a good impression.
Curb appeal– First impressions are everything when selling a house by owner. To entice buyers, the exterior of your home should be pristine. Does your home have overgrown shrubs and flower beds that need weeding? Doing some yard work will be required and making sure toys or bikes are put away before listing.Â
Also, does your house have chipped paint or rotten wood? Any major or minor repairs should be done beforehand. Depending on how much work is needed may require hiring a handyman to make necessary repairs, which can get pricey depending on what needs to be done. By not making these improvements prior, it may discourage potential buyers from looking at your property.
Hire a professional photographer– the saying goes a picture is worth a thousand words, so hiring a professional photographer is vital to draw in potential buyers. A real estate photographer in Virginia Beach can vary in price depending on your house’s location and size. Don’t be surprised to spend a few hundred dollars.Â
Schedule an open house– planning an open house, will allow potential buyers to take a look at your home without the pressure to buy. Be prepared, though, for multiple strangers to walk through your home, have printed flyers available, and equip yourself to answer any questions a potential buyer may have. Plus, plan to give up a weekend afternoon to show your home and make sure the rest of the family and pets have somewhere to go for a couple of hours.Â
Once you have been through all of the steps of getting your house ready and had professional photos taken, it’s time to market your home. Using social media like Facebook or Craigslist is one way to show your listing. Another way is by using for sale by owner websites, which are either free or charge a fee to advertise your house. Don’t forget to invest in a for sale sign for your front yard.
When you are in charge of the selling process, you are responsible for confirming if the buyer can afford your home. Meaning whenever a buyer makes you an offer, it is your responsibility to ask the buyer to provide you with a mortgage pre-approval letter if they aren’t a cash buyer. Besides that, you need to ensure they have the down payment for your home and don’t have conditional loan approval to interfere with closing.
Also, it may be useful to have a real estate attorney representing you in the sale. Though you do not need an attorney to sell your house by yourself, they would help guide you through the legal aspects of selling your home. Just be prepared to spend a few thousand dollars for their expertise.Â
Now that you understand all the challenges and hidden costs of selling your house by owner, it may seem like a lot of work. Have you ever considered selling your home to a homebuyer like Avante Home Buyers? They purchase homes in the Virginia Beach area and make the selling process much easier for you. What makes selling to a homebuyer like Avante Home Buyers so appealing is that they buy houses as-is—no need to worry about repairs, hiring a handyman, or cleaning. Also, they handle the technical side of the closing process and usually require only one visit to your home. The best part of working with Avante Home Buyers is that they don’t charge commissions or fees and are flexible on terms. They genuinely make selling your home smoother for you without going through the hassle of selling your house by owner.  Don’t hesitate to contact them so start the process.
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