Nov
09
9 Creative and Cheap Ways to Sell Your Home Fast
By
Mathew Butka asked:
Selling your home is not an easy task and sometimes the hidden costs are enough to send the meak running away with tears in their eyes. However, there are creative and cheap ideas that can be used to help sell your home quickly. This will cost money but with a little bit of know-how and forethought, it can work to be cheaper in the long run and the investment and time put in can reap higher profits if applied properly.
Here is what you should consider when trying to sell your home quickly without spending a ton of money.
Home Value – maximizing your profit is your goal but the trick is to evaluate all the surrounding homes in the immediate neighborhood that have sold recently and are comparable in appearance and quality to your own. This is what real estate agents refer to as “the comps.” Then do some research what improvements should be done to your home that are in keeping with the neighborhood. The key here is to make your home more attractive than the competition in order to reach your target price. Get your home valued by a real estate agent as it is now and then again after making any improvements; set the price at the highest price given, allowing for the lowest price you will sell for as being the median between the original and new valuation prices. Be your own advertiser – take quality photos of the best features of your home and advertise them on zillow.com and realtor.com; put a for sale sign in your yard with contact details; create and print your own fliers, distributing them yourself from home to home, in store windows, at gyms/grocery stores/restaurants/cafes and bars; and advertise your home in the same ways in a neighborhood that is also one step up from your home as many people are willing to invest in up and coming neighborhoods. Take a real estate agent’s course or study for free online – learn all the tricks and tips needed to know to sell your own home and avoid the cost of hiring an agent, as well as the pitfalls that you should be aware of; consult with agents on a friendly basis for tips and trends; and be prepared to invest time into showing your home yourself, but if this is too much then hire a real estate agent that gives quality for money. Make your home stand out from the neighbors – clean up the yard, paint the inside a neutral tone, fix all damage or faults, fill in holes and clean the grease in the driveway, paint the outside and fences, get rid of internal clutter and replace old furnishings that are eyesores, mow the lawn, trim/prune/weed, and invest in bedding plants and hanging baskets; and most of all keep it spotless. Only improve what needs vital improvements – never invest in major renovations or improvements unless absolutely necessary; state-of-the-art is not necessary, but fixing things that have worn out are vital; paint cupboards instead of replacing good ones; replace carpets yourself or put in slotted wood flooring yourself; and buy a DIY and home improvement book that shows use the basics of plumbing, decorating and other things to avoid hiring contractors. Invest your improvement money in home preservation versus luxury – spend your funds for home improvements on keeping the home in good order, repairing damage and deterioration, and upgrading wiring or things that could threaten the price as well as the safety of the home. Fix the driveway yourself – fill in major and minor cracks by purchasing a spreader and asphalt re-sealer from your local hardware store, but do not hire a contractor. While you are at it, be sure to clean up the stains on the driveway from dripping oil from engines. Keep up the style of the neighborhood – fix your home to be in keeping with the neighborhood and not to become the local palace in a dumpy area; and do not upgrade unless the overall internal styles are impractical or too outdated to make it workable or live-able. Hold your own open house – prepare brochures and specs ahead of time by downloading free templates for your word processing program on your computer and insert good quality photos that you can take yourself with a digital camera, detailing the main features, local amenities and special things about the neighborhood and your home that make it worth investing in; prepare a tour by emphasizing all the best aspects of your home and how it has allowed you and your family to have a happy home to live, but do not give any negative aspects; and as an added bonus, offer free coffee, tea, juice and homemade cookies to make the whole experience more inviting.
Get Advise from a Scottsdale Realtor
Selling your home is not an easy task and sometimes the hidden costs are enough to send the meak running away with tears in their eyes. However, there are creative and cheap ideas that can be used to help sell your home quickly. This will cost money but with a little bit of know-how and forethought, it can work to be cheaper in the long run and the investment and time put in can reap higher profits if applied properly.
Here is what you should consider when trying to sell your home quickly without spending a ton of money.
Home Value – maximizing your profit is your goal but the trick is to evaluate all the surrounding homes in the immediate neighborhood that have sold recently and are comparable in appearance and quality to your own. This is what real estate agents refer to as “the comps.” Then do some research what improvements should be done to your home that are in keeping with the neighborhood. The key here is to make your home more attractive than the competition in order to reach your target price. Get your home valued by a real estate agent as it is now and then again after making any improvements; set the price at the highest price given, allowing for the lowest price you will sell for as being the median between the original and new valuation prices. Be your own advertiser – take quality photos of the best features of your home and advertise them on zillow.com and realtor.com; put a for sale sign in your yard with contact details; create and print your own fliers, distributing them yourself from home to home, in store windows, at gyms/grocery stores/restaurants/cafes and bars; and advertise your home in the same ways in a neighborhood that is also one step up from your home as many people are willing to invest in up and coming neighborhoods. Take a real estate agent’s course or study for free online – learn all the tricks and tips needed to know to sell your own home and avoid the cost of hiring an agent, as well as the pitfalls that you should be aware of; consult with agents on a friendly basis for tips and trends; and be prepared to invest time into showing your home yourself, but if this is too much then hire a real estate agent that gives quality for money. Make your home stand out from the neighbors – clean up the yard, paint the inside a neutral tone, fix all damage or faults, fill in holes and clean the grease in the driveway, paint the outside and fences, get rid of internal clutter and replace old furnishings that are eyesores, mow the lawn, trim/prune/weed, and invest in bedding plants and hanging baskets; and most of all keep it spotless. Only improve what needs vital improvements – never invest in major renovations or improvements unless absolutely necessary; state-of-the-art is not necessary, but fixing things that have worn out are vital; paint cupboards instead of replacing good ones; replace carpets yourself or put in slotted wood flooring yourself; and buy a DIY and home improvement book that shows use the basics of plumbing, decorating and other things to avoid hiring contractors. Invest your improvement money in home preservation versus luxury – spend your funds for home improvements on keeping the home in good order, repairing damage and deterioration, and upgrading wiring or things that could threaten the price as well as the safety of the home. Fix the driveway yourself – fill in major and minor cracks by purchasing a spreader and asphalt re-sealer from your local hardware store, but do not hire a contractor. While you are at it, be sure to clean up the stains on the driveway from dripping oil from engines. Keep up the style of the neighborhood – fix your home to be in keeping with the neighborhood and not to become the local palace in a dumpy area; and do not upgrade unless the overall internal styles are impractical or too outdated to make it workable or live-able. Hold your own open house – prepare brochures and specs ahead of time by downloading free templates for your word processing program on your computer and insert good quality photos that you can take yourself with a digital camera, detailing the main features, local amenities and special things about the neighborhood and your home that make it worth investing in; prepare a tour by emphasizing all the best aspects of your home and how it has allowed you and your family to have a happy home to live, but do not give any negative aspects; and as an added bonus, offer free coffee, tea, juice and homemade cookies to make the whole experience more inviting.
Get Advise from a Scottsdale Realtor
