You bought your first Lake Havasu City home a few years ago. But since then, you got married, had a couple of kids, and your lifestyle no longer fits inside of that house. So, you need to sell it and find yourself a new place. However, before you list your property, keep these common mistakes first-time home sellers make in mind to avoid a long, drawn-out sale.
Common Mistakes First-Time Home Sellers Make
Set List Price Too High
First and foremost, make sure you set your list price appropriately. These past couple of years found sellers in the cat-bird seat. Properties were snatched up almost as soon as they hit the market. Many times, buyers paid over the list price just to seal the deal. But the tide has turned recently. Instead of a hot, hot seller’s market, we see it turning towards a more balanced market. So now, more than ever, you need to listen to your REALTOR® when they tell you where the current market says that you need to set your price. Otherwise, you may find yourself sitting on the market for much longer than necessary and need to make a price reduction or two before you find a buyer.
Be Too Rigid About Viewings
Another mistake first-time sellers tend to make is to limit the number of showings you allow as well as the times you make your Havasu home available to view. Put this in your mind right now: selling a home can sometimes be inconvenient. Only allowing buyers a chance to view the house between 10 am and 2 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays really limits your buyer pool. You need to make your property available on the buyer’s timeline as much as possible. Otherwise, it may take much longer to sell than if you had been more flexible.
Do Not Stage Home
If you want top dollar for your Havasu home, you need to make sure it looks like it deserves top dollar. To do so, you need to stage it. If your budget allows, hire a pro. They know how to move furniture around (sometimes from room to room) and eliminate unnecessary elements to make each and every area of your household look big, bright, and ready for someone to move right in. If a professional stager is not in the budget, consider these helpful staging tips to get you started. And do not forget to stage the outside of your house as well.
Only Thinking About the Money
Contrary to popular belief, it is not always about money. Well, it’s primarily about the money. But you should never make money the only factor when considering an offer. You need to also look at the terms, how strong the buyer’s financials are, how much they use for their earnest money deposit, and whether the offer appears too good to be true. (It happens sometimes.) That is where a good REALTOR® comes in handy.
DIY Home Sale
Finally, first-time home sellers sometimes think they can DIY everything…including selling their home. It takes a lot of time to market, show, negotiate, and schedule the various aspects of a home sale. For someone who has neither the time nor experience with selling a home, this can be incredibly overwhelming. Let a professional handle all of these headaches for you.
Lori Dee Doerfler, Helping you negotiate through all the real estate noise