It is a huge question with which we can only hope to cure your most burning questions and point you in the direction that’s best for you. The question at hand, of course, is how to sell your house. Your house is likely your most significant asset and thus should call for careful consideration. Should I use a realtor? How do I price it? What contracts do I need? I’ve never negotiated more than a car purchase, am I in over my head to try to sell my own house?
No, you’re not. You can do this. We’ll show you how.
How to Sell Your House in Nashville
To jump right in the deep end with a free full guide on how to sell your house top to bottom, beginning to end, click here. Otherwise, it may help you to simplify a task with seemingly endless options by asking yourself this one question:
Do I want to sell with a real estate agent, or sell it by myself (AKA For Sale By Owner)?
Selling With a Real Estate Agent
Only after answering that question can you move forward. If you choose to have an agent represent you, your job is much easier. Yes, you do have to pay them, but often times they can garner a higher price with their skill set that ends up covering your cost of their commission.
The agent will assist you with choosing a price, marketing the property, and negotiating offers and inspection concessions. The typical cons of working with an agent include the inconvenience of showings parading through your home, making repairs and keeping the house in mint condition, and most of all, an extended timeline. An MLS sale can be very drawn out and not the best option for someone in a hurry. Our free downloadable guide also has detailed instructions for selecting an agent.
Selling For Sale By Owner (FSBO)
Odds are, if you are reading this you are looking for information about how to sell your house by yourself. Let’s break it out into the 5 steps you need to take to go from your current situation, to a deposit in your bank account!
1. Price Your House
To sell your house for sale by owner, your first step is to price the property. This isn’t an exact science as the true value of any house is what someone is willing to pay for it. There are many professional opinions of value, such as appraisers, banks, and brokers — but all will have differing opinions of value. So as you take on this mission, you can take relief in the fact that no one gets it perfect.
So how does anyone take a stab at what a house is worth? Comps, of course. That is, comparable properties nearby. Similar features such as square feet, beds, baths, condition and build year are all required to compare your house to others that have sold in the past 6 – 12 months. Use those nearby sold properties to figure out what you should list your house for. If you don’t have access to the MLS, Redfin.com is a great resource.
You can price your home a little under value to get it to move faster and get a bidding war perhaps, or give yourself some room for negotiation by shooting for the high side.
2. Market Your Property
“Exposure raises value!”
Ultimately what your house is worth is what someone is willing to pay for it. But first, you have to find that person who will pay the most. That’s how to sell your house! You market your property.
You have to get in front of as many people as possible, and lucky for you, there are a lot of great ways to do this without spending too much. Many of them are free!
***Before you go too deep into making a plan to get the word out, be sure to take a look around your house for opportunities to easily raise value by adding features, or reducing eyesores. Paint, for example, is the most cost-effective way to quickly add appeal and value to your home!***
There are online resources that have a lot of activity like Zillow and ForSaleByOwner.com that you can use to list your home for free. A sign in the yard always helps, and be sure to leverage Facebook for it’s community groups and pages. Flyers can go a long ways in some high-traffic areas.
Click here for a detailed guide on how to sell your house without an agent!
3. Entertain Buyers
A critical step in getting that house sold is making sure you talk to buyers the right way to ease them into desiring your house and signing on the dotted line. This activity will mostly fall into two categories:
Incoming Calls / Interest. Come up with some questions to vet buyers, and of course be ready to answer theirs! Negotiations begin the moment you pick up the phone and say “Hello,” so be sure you are representing your property in a positive light. Make them want it! Appeal to the emotions as they begin imagining a new life in your home!
Showings. First impressions can make or break your home. You want your house to appeal to them in a way that makes it easy to say “Yes!” Perhaps more importantly, you always want to eliminate any easy “No’s” by keeping it clean, well lit. Give them a personal tour, mentioning the positive things, and it will make it harder for them to dwell on the negatives.
4. Send the Contract to Escrow
Eventually, you’ll begin getting offers. Carefully review the details of each offer, and you’ll almost always want to send a counter offer. Don’t accept their first offer right away, even if it looks great, as you’ll be setting the pace for the rest of the negotiations.
You’ll want to ink a contract with the buyer, and if you aren’t sure how in the world you find that kind of paperwork, we recommend asking the attorney that will be handling the closing for any paperwork you’ll be needing. We’ll have a vendor page coming soon where we can recommend a closing office to work with.
5. Close
Once you have a contract, more than anyone else, your job is to escort the deal all the way to closing. Check in the with buyer and their bank regularly so you can nip any problems in the bud.
You’ll attend closing at the closing office and you can get your check or inbound wire and you’ve sold your house!
Need More Info or Help?
We hope this article on how to sell your house in Nashville has been helpful. Remember, you can download a full 15-page PDF for free with much more detail by clicking here.
And if at any point you want to be done with it all, we can make you an offer within 24 hours of seeing the home. Cash, as is, and closing on your date of choice! Just call 615-455-5979 or contact us.