Selling a house in Columbia? For most homeowners, selling their home seems like a very straightforward task, but that’s not always the case. To put you in the perfect frame of mind to prep your house for the market, let’s go over 7 things people often don’t know about selling a house in Columbia.
The Agent Search
Once you’re ready to get the ball rolling, it’s a great idea to take your time while hunting down the perfect real estate professional for you.
This means getting recommendations from friends and family, meeting with multiple agents, and contacting their references. Different agents have varying contacts they have accumulated throughout their careers. Those resources – may be a professional photographer or an interior designer – could make a substantial difference when selling a house in Columbia.
Make sure you thoroughly read through any agency contract prior to signing on the dotted line, and don’t forget that commission is always negotiable as long as the agent values you as a client.
Timing Is Essential
It’s no big secret that timing when your listing hits the market will have a great impact.
Spring and summer listings have a tendency to sell faster, and for more money, than listings that go up in the colder months. Some planning allows you to have everything ready to go and hit the ground running once your listing is active.
Highlight Your Work
Any listing will be sure to mention special features of a property, but you want to really drive home any work you did on the home.
Take the time to individually point out any upgrades, repairs, or additions in which you were involved. This helps make it clear that you have a strong, meaningful investment in this property, and want it to go to a worthy and motivated buyer.
Be Upfront About Issues
While you would not want to state the negatives of your property in your listing, don’t go out of your way to hide downsides from potential buyers.
Disclosing things like the requirement for flood insurance, along with estimated premiums, or necessary repairs shows you’re open and honest about what the buyer could be getting themselves into. If a buyer finds out you’re hiding something, they’re not going to trust you through the rest of the process.
This would make negotiation much more complicated, assuming they haven’t already bailed on the deal.
Details Matter
Everybody knows you need to clean your house before putting it on the market, but it’s common for sellers to take things a step further by cutting down the objects in their homes.
Declutter your closets by removing everything from the closet, selecting half of the items to store elsewhere, and reorganize the remaining half when putting it back. Depersonalize the living spaces by removing family photos and heirlooms.
These steps will both help the potential buyers feel like they’re viewing the home as a place for them to make their mark rather than an intruder in your space.
Don’t Rely Solely on the Internet
It can be very easy in this day and age for someone to take a look at one of the popular listing sites and feel everything there is gospel.
These sites will try providing estimates for property values mostly based on whatever tax records they can get their hands on, and they quickly and easily become out of date. Your agent comes equipped with years of knowledge and experience that informs every decision and suggestion they make.
Listen to them, and you’ll be better off for it.
The Pre-listing Inspection
Once you feel everything is ready to go, consider calling in an inspector to go through everything thoroughly.
This will give you an idea of anything you and your agent may have overlooked, and prepares you for any results that could come from a later inspection done by the buyer. Getting ahead of any issues will certainly pay off later when selling a house in Columbia.
Professional Guidance for Selling a House in Columbia
If you’re planning on selling a house in Columbia soon, contact us today at 803-792-SELL!