With enough time and patience, anyone can sell their home, but it takes some careful and creative thinking to stand out above the other homes for sale in your neighborhood. To get your home sale adventure headed in the right direction, let’s go over how to quickly sell your Santa Cruz house in a competitive market:
Preparation Is Key
Before your listing is out in the wild and interested parties come to take a look at what your property has to offer them, you need to be meticulous in getting your home ready for the market.
Deep cleaning absolutely every single nook and cranny is an obvious must, but the more overlooked process is decluttering every storage area and room. The goal of decluttering is to maximize the available living and storage space by removing unneeded and personal items to a separate location for temporary storage.
Taking the time to get family photos and heirlooms out of your home now means they will remain secure while selling your home and also not leave potential buyers feeling like they’re intruding when they come to take a look at the house.
Find Your Agent
It’s common for sellers to take a family or friend’s recommendation and immediately hire the first agent that comes up in conversation. We strongly suggest you find at least three agents, meet with all of them, and get a clear understanding of how they will market your home so that it sells quickly and for as much money as possible in a competitive market.
Don’t be shy and make sure you ask any questions you may have about selling your home, whether it’s about the estimated timeline, process, or any ideas of ways you can improve your home’s sales potential. Every extra bit of information an agent is willing to share with you means they are there to make your real estate sale a success.
Settle on a Realistic Price
One of the biggest ways any home seller can shoot themselves in the foot is by failing to price their home appropriately at the very beginning.
Pricing your home too high will instantly limit buyer interest and may result in the home sitting on the market for months while you slowly cut the price bit by bit. This will eventually signal desperation to buyers who are then more likely to flock in an attempt to strong-arm you into lowering the price further.
On the other hand, pricing your home too low can leave buyers with a feeling of suspicion. They may take a more critical eye when looking into your property as they feel you’re hiding something major that would make their purchasing your home a serious financial risk.
The best way to price your home is by looking at the final closing prices of similar homes in your neighborhood over the last couple of years. Get an idea of what seems fair from this data and then take into account the health of your local market.
If you have an agent on your side, they can and should take the reins here in order to set a reasonable price right out of the gate.
Remain Flexible
As potential buyers start showing interest, be prepared to have to vacate your home on short notice to accommodate showings.
Have a plan ready to go in case you have to get any pets, kids, or work materials out of the house quickly. Showing a bit of flexibility during negotiation can also be the final piece of the puzzle.
Understand that you may not get everything you want from selling your home, but pushing for equal give and take is of course acceptable. Giving buyers the time and space to think things over indicates a level of respect that should then be returned during negotiation.
Guidance Selling Your House in a Competitive Market
Selling your home quickly and for the right price in a competitive market can be tough, so trust our experienced team to help and contact us today at 831-588-2334!