Common House Selling Mistakes OFWs Should Avoid
Selling your home can be an emotional process for you to go through especially if it’s your first time putting up a property on sale. As a first-time home seller, it’s inevitable for you to commit selling mistakes. And these pitfalls may leave a huge dent in your profit and may incur more losses instead of gains.
Well, we got your back covered as we’ve listed down common house selling mistakes OFWs like you should avoid to get the most out of your transaction.
Mistake № 1- Selling the home when they aren’t really ready
Your house is more than just a four-walled structure with a roof on top. It is where you nurtured your family and created lasting memories with your friends and peers so it’s completely understandable if some people get emotional when selling their home. However, when putting up a property for sale, it’s important to visualize yourself as a real estate agent finding prospective buyers rather than as a homeowner to put yourself in an objective prospective. If you let your emotions get in the way, you may price your house a bit too high or too low, or you might end up not selling you house at all!
Mistake № 2- Not hiring a real estate agent
Going FSBO (For Sale by Owner) is enticing especially if you think about the amount of money you can save by dodging agent’s fees and commissions. However, only 10% of FSBOs posted online actually sell. It’s a big risk to gamble into.
Working side by side with a real estate agent, a broker, or realtor can help you a lot in terms of pricing and negotiations, researching marketing strategies based on your local market, hosting open houses, preparing and processing the necessary documents, and accommodating potential buyers. Plus, going FSBO will require a lot of your time and attention, which may be difficult on your part especially if you are working a 9–5 job. Hiring a real estate agent will save you tons of work and time!
Mistake № 3- Hiring the wrong real estate agent
Let’s say you heeded our advice and hired a real estate agent to aid you in selling you home. But how can you determine if it’s the perfect agent for you? While there are lots of real estate agents to choose from, not all of them came from the same mold. Some may be professional and some will provide you works of a mediocre. Before trusting and handling all the transactions and negotiations to your chosen agent, make sure you have scrutinized him first and has conducted a necessary background check.
Mistake № 4- The price isn’t right
Another common mistake done by home sellers is putting up the wrong or inappropriate price tag in their property. Sometimes, we get too emotional and set up a price higher than the actual market value of the property. This may drive away potential buyers and will give you a hard time selling your home. On the other hand, if you price your house a bit too low, then you may not get the return of investment you are hoping for.
Mistake № 5- Hiding Major Problems
If you think you can hide away the leaky roof or bugs in the basement then think again. The buyer’s home inspection will uncover them all for you. Hiding and not fixing such major problems may cause unwanted delay in the sale and turnover of your property — what’s sadder is when your potential buyer backs out completely!
There are three ways for you to address this problem: conduct all the necessary repairs before the home inspection, price your property below market value as a compensation or list it with a normal price while offering the buyer a credit to cover the repair costs.
Mistake № 6- Skimping on staging
Should you stage your house? Some home sellers may think that they could skip this step, however, studies have shown that staging your home increases its chances of being sold faster. It won’t hurt to prep your house a little, isn’t it? And don’t worry, you don’t have to hire professional service in order to stage you home. A simple declutter and arranging of furniture will do the magic!
Mistake № 7- Skimping on Listing Photos
In this digital age, most of the home buyers scour various real estate and property listing sites to find their dream home. Being a home seller, it’s vital for you to put out real estate photos that will make online buyers scroll back to take a second glance.
Learning the basics of real estate photography will help your listing photos stand out in the market. Highlight all the best features of your house through these clear and crisp photos. You can also add a 360 degree view of your home (both exterior and interior) to give online buyers that ‘virtual tour’ feel.
Mistake № 8- Not Accommodating buyers
Expect to get calls, texts, and inquiries about your property listing even when you’re in the middle of a meeting or presentation. While it may be such an inconvenience on your part, it’s important to accommodate every buyer and respond to their inquiry as soon as you can. If they want to conduct a house tour, tidying up your space for any clutter or mess will give a good, lasting impression on your buyer.
Mistake № 9- Not tidying up your space before a house tour
Tidying up your space for any clutter or mess will give a good, lasting impression on your buyer the moment they step inside of your home. They’ll think that the house is a safe and clean place to move into because it is well-taken care of by the previous owner.
Don’t forget you pets! While your dear pet dog or cat is such a sweetheart, it may drive away homebuyers who have fur allergy or asthma, so you need to take that into consideration, too.
Mistake № 10- Having unrealistic expectations about the whole selling process
Of course, we want to sell our property with the highest price in the shortest time possible. However, not all times that circumstances are favoring our odds. You might get frustrated because your home isn’t selling as quickly as you expected it to be. But remember, every home has a different selling process and timeframe. Your home might sell faster than the others and vice versa.
Final Takeaway
Selling your home may be an emotional task and you may find yourself being overwhelmed with the heavy load of work. On top of that, you need to be extra careful not to step on ‘landmines’ that can blow you off financially. By knowing these common home selling mistakes, you are getting one step away from activating such financial bombs.
