Every time I sell a residence it seems like I have a different set of selling house tips. I guess that's logical, since every transaction is unique, full of distinct situations and surprises, although I like to call them learning experiences. All these learning experiences are the source of the selling house tips I often share in articles and in person.
My tips in this article are derived from a couple experiences I've had repeatedly while buying and re-selling houses over the years. Naturally, some of these experiences are familiar to other sellers, and especially to investors like me. We are all learning when we buy houses to repair, remodel and re-sell, so you'll find that other real estate investors can be a good source of information for how to sell a house.
My tip number one involves preparing yourself to sell, and that means well before posting your private residence online or listing your house with an agent. So, how do you get yourself ready for how to sell your house? You start by accepting the fact that selling your house is your own job, not someone else's job. Of course you can always choose to delegate parts of your job, but you can never transfer the entire responsibility to anyone else. It simply won't work, and it simply isn't wise.
Accepting full responsibility yourself means you get involved in promoting your house for sale and finding your buyer, and you look for ways to do that every day. You many still hire other people to promote your house for you if you're hired an agent, but it's important to remember that your agent is there to help you, not take the whole responsibility off you, especially in this present economy. You and your agent need to cooperate together to find a buyer for your house.
My other tip is directed towards homeowners who have decided to sell a house on their own, which means they have no plans to put it on the local multiple listing service. I encourage sellers to list their homes, but right now I'm speaking to those who undertake to sell by owner, and I'm reminding them to get professional advice, from lawyers, agents, title company representatives or other professionals.
I can tell you from experience that things seem to pick up steam immediately when you find a buyer, so get prepared in advance to make sure you're set. Simply shaking hands on an understanding is not enough to start a real estate transaction properly, and to accomplish the legal contracts needed to move your sale from start to finish in the right way. So, always make sure you have the all the forms you need when the time comes.
