Selling Your Home
Selling Your Home
When it comes to selling a home, every homeowner wants to get the best possible price quickly and with minimal hassle. If your home is your primary residence, you won’t have to pay capital gains tax on any profits from the sale. However, if it’s an investment property, be prepared to pay the tax man. Before you begin the selling process, it’s essential to evaluate why you want to move. Are you looking for a change, do you need more space or fewer rooms, has your job moved you to another city, or are your neighbours driving you away? A thorough analysis of your current situation will provide a solid foundation for your next home search.
Buy or Sell First?
Buying or selling a home first can be a difficult decision. If you find a buyer for your current home before you find a new one, you may end up living out of a suitcase if you can’t negotiate convenient closing dates. Conversely, if you find your dream home before you sell your current one, you may be stuck with two mortgages for a while. The best way to manage this dilemma is to do your research and have a clear idea of the neighbourhood and type of home you’re looking for. Discuss your needs and budget with your sales representative and start your new home search as soon as your existing home is on the market. If you find a home before selling your existing one, include “sale of your existing home” as a condition on your offer. However, this condition may be challenging for sellers to agree upon, and you may lose your negotiating power.
Purchasing a home before selling your existing property can be a risky strategy if you’re relying on the proceeds from the sale to finance your new home. If you’ve found a buyer before finding your next home, include “purchase of a new home” as a condition when you sign the agreement. Even if you haven’t found your ideal home by the time the deal closes, you may still want to proceed with the offer. As a buyer with a “sold house,” you’ll have a stronger bargaining position to negotiate the price.
Make Your House More Sellable
Although we may view our home as our fortress, our individual preferences may not be universally appealing. Your sales representative can provide you with an unbiased evaluation of your home, including how it stacks up against other comparable homes on the market and how it reflects current design and style trends. Additionally, your sales representative will thoroughly assess the overall condition and maintenance of your property.
In summary, your sales representative will collaborate with you to position your home on the market in a manner that will expedite your sales process.
Advertise Your Home on Various Internet Real Estate Portals
To increase the visibility of your home and reach a wider pool of potential buyers, your sales representative will advertise your home on various internet real estate portals. This will ensure that the details and features of your home are readily available and accessible to a larger audience.
Arrange Showings
To ensure your home is presented in the best possible light to potential buyers, your sales representative will create a detailed home feature sheet that highlights the most attractive features and upgrades of your home, including lot size, room dimensions, utility costs, and taxes. This sheet will be given to prospective buyers during open houses and viewings and serves as a valuable reference tool for them when comparing properties.
Open houses can be a stressful experience as you’ll need to keep your home looking its best for potential buyers who will be walking through your property. However, the advantage is that you won’t have to be present during the open house as your sales representative will act as a guide for prospective buyers.
When a prospective buyer expresses interest in your home, their sales representative will contact your representative to schedule a viewing. During the viewing, your sales representative will provide the viewer with a feature sheet and encourage them to explore your home at their own pace. It’s important to provide viewers with privacy during the viewing and allow them to browse through your home without following them around. Your sales representative will stay with them to provide security and protect against any potential damage or theft.
Closing the Sale
Closing is a time of packing and organization. Be sure you do not pack anything that you agreed to sell! Unless you specifically mentioned certain fixtures, everything must remain in place.
You are responsible for handing over the home in the same condition it was at the time of closing. This applies to everything that was in the agreement. If the home suffers a major disaster, you are responsible for telling the buyer, at which point the buyer may walk away from the deal and have the deposit returned. The buyer may also choose to close and receive any insurance proceeds. In this unfortunate event, remember not to make any repairs until you find out what the buyer wants to do.
The Closing
Once signing the agreement, both the seller and buyer are under a legal obligation to close. If you decide not to for whatever reason, the buyer has the right to sue.
If the buyer decides to walk away from the deal, you can claim the buyer’s deposit or sue for damages.