Welcome back to Part 3 of my video series on keys to selling your home. Are you considering selling your home, but you aren’t exactly sure how the process works? Does the thought of selling your home feel intimidating or overwhelming? In this video series I’m going to share with you the key steps to selling your home from start to finish to help alleviate the feelings of being overwhelmed and the intimidation factors that come when you decide you want to move.
Today we are going to discuss the next 3 key steps to selling your home. In the previous video we covered discovering your reason for selling, finding a realtor, preparing your home, pricing, staging and marketing. So what’s next? Let’s dive in.
Step 7: Showings
You’ve done all this hard work to get your home ready for buyers, so make sure you accommodate as many showings as possible, whether that’s agent tours, buyer showings or open houses. The more traffic you can get through your home the more likely you will secure an offer. If your home is not available to be seen when a buyer wants to see it don’t be surprised if they skip seeing your house at all. So make sure you keep the home show ready as much as possible. I understand you still need to live there, and that keeping your home in top notch condition can be a real pain, but remember the pain is worth the end goal of selling your home.
Step 8: Negotiations
Once an offer is received, your Realtor will review and go through the offer with you. You’ll need to review the offer carefully to determine its strengths and drawbacks to decide if you want to accept it as is or if you want to negotiate further. You need to decide in advance what terms are most important to you. For instance, if price is most important, you may need to be flexible on your closing date. Or if convenience is a factor or you need a specific closing date you may have to be flexible on the price. Negotiation is actually just the beginning of a successful transaction. Negotiations and counter offers are a normal part of the home selling process. With a little back and forth, you will hopefully reach a deal you’re happy with. Remember negotiations happen throughout the transaction even after the purchase price and closing date and other terms are accepted. The next negotiation steps will take place after the home inspection. Buyers have the opportunity to conduct a home inspection and request repairs. Sellers have the option to make repairs, make some repairs or deny repairs. Almost every step in the contract is a negotiation. And finally if for some reason the house does not appraise then then the negotiations start all over because your previous terms you agreed to were based on you receiving a an agreed upon purchase price that is no longer valid.
Step 9: Closing
Once the home has gone through inspections and appraisals we are headed into the final stretch of closing on the home. The closing or settlement is the last stage in the home selling process. Closing is a process in which all of the necessary paperwork needed to complete the transaction is signed. The closing process is managed by escrow or title company. in Arizona, most of the time the seller has already signed the needed documents before the buyers’ loan is completed. It is not uncommon for the buyer and the seller never meet in when selling or buying home in Arizona. In Arizona the day the home funds and records with the county is the the closing date. I typically tell my sellers to plan on being moved out and have home cleaned in tip top shape 24 hours prior to our closing date. I have lots of sellers ask how they need to leave a property. I like to say how would you like to have a property left for your. Most will say clean and in good conditions. So my recommendation is to always do the same when you are the seller.
Remember selling your home is marathon not a sprint. There is a method to the madness and each step needs to be followed in order for a Realtor to give you the best advice and service possible. If you found these tips helpful then you may also be interested in my next video series where I will discuss the key steps to buying a home.
If you have any other questions regarding the buying and selling process in the Greater Phoenix Marketplace please reach out. I’m a seasoned agent with 15+ years experience here to help you with one of the biggest financial decisions you will make.
