Selling a house can be one of the most stressful things a person ever has to do. It can be made worse if you pick the wrong realtor to do the job for you. Whilst a realtor will take a lot of the day to day hassle away including advertising your property and showing it off they can charge quite a surprising amount of money for what is basically a very simple job. Having bought and sold a number of properties over the years I’ve begun to question if a realtor provides value for money?
The Value of Your Property
So where do I start if I want to sell my house without using a professional realtor? There are some obvious things that need to be done. I need to ensure the house is neat and tidy and presented in the best manner possible. Damp spots painted over, leaking drain pipe fixed and the dog hairs vacuumed up for starters. However the key first major step is to try and figure out how much my property is worth. This isn’t difficult; a simple online review of property prices and local newspapers gave me a very good idea as to what houses in my area and of my type were actually being sold for. In some areas, actual sale prices are a matter of public record and can be looked up.
Pricing Your House
Having got my house to a presentable state and having figured out what I think is a fair price, the next step is to advertise the house. Firstly a trip to a printer will give you a “for sale” sign. The next step is to get the house up online. There are numerous websites that will host your listing for a reasonable fee. There is no need for a professional photographer, a good mobile phone can take really top class photos. Before you upload your pictures however make sure you’ve looked at lots of other listings to see what kind of photos would appeal or repel a prospective buyer.
Put Together an Open House
As part of my advert I recommend you also organise an open house and print off a very simple brochure with details and measurements of the house and some background on the area itself as well. The main benefit of the open day is that you can organise all of your viewings on the one day and not be running around trying to fit them in around your life. Once that open day is done you may need to be flexible for any follow up viewings from serious potential purchasers.
After that, it’s a matter of letting the bidding begin. Don’t be too greedy; prospective buyers will go elsewhere if the price is too high. Remember as well that a cash buyer can close quicker and with more certainty then one in a chain. Selling without a realtor will stress you out a bit but there is no doubt the money you save can be put to a far better purpose.