Selling Your Home: Overview
by Attorney Ilona Bray
The home selling process will be much less daunting if you take it step by step.
When you bought your home, you probably felt like the seller held all the cards -- and you'd be lucky if the house ever became yours. Now you're sitting on the other side of the table, and likely experiencing a different set of anxieties: How much is your house really worth -- what if you set the price too high, or too low? Are you willing to pay a 5% commission for an agent 's help? Should you repaint or remodel before putting the house on the market? This article will look at the home-selling process step by step, and link you to other important information sources.
Step One: Decide How the Local Market Will Affect Your Sale
If you bought your house a long time ago, it's probably worth much more now. But even during the months that you plan your sale, the real estate market may be moving up and down. Try to take the market's temperature. A "hot" market is one in which there are more buyers than sellers, so the buyers are competing with each other and driving up prices. A "cold" market is one with more sellers than buyers, so the buyers can be choosy and bid low. The hotter the market, the more aggressive you can be in pricing your house.
Simply chatting with your neighbors can teach you a fair amount about the heat of the local market. Also, read your local newspaper's real estate section, and talk to realtors you meet at open houses.
Step Two: Use Comparable Houses to Set Your List Price
The best source of pricing information comes from houses directly comparable to your own. In the real estate industry, a "comparable," or "comp," is a house with similar features, preferably located near yours -- ideally within six blocks. When identifying comps, look for houses with the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms and other amenities. Eventually you'll be able to predict the prices of other houses, and get a sense of what yours should be listed for.
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Copyright 2007 Nolo
