Selling Your Home? 3 Tips To Improve Your Chances Of Closing The Deal
Selling a home can be a real headache, especially in a buyer's market. If you're selling your home right now, you want to make sure that you have the best chances of securing an offer as quickly as possible. However, you also need to have your eye on the long-range goal – closing escrow. There are a few things that can quickly derail your goal. To help ensure the success of your home sale, you need to be prepared for those possible derailments. Here are three steps you can take to help keep the sale from falling apart.
Say Yes to a Pre-Sale Inspection
If you're planning on selling your home, you need to say yes to a pre-sale inspection. This inspection will give you an advance warning of the potential problems you might be facing. It will also prevent you from being blind-sided when the buyers request an inspection and you find out about problems at the last minute. If that happens, you may be left scurrying to pay for repairs to prevent the sale from falling through. The pre-sale inspection will allow you to take care of those issues before your home goes on the market.
Obtain Your Own Appraisal
The lender is going to request an appraisal once your home has a solid offer. However, if you didn't obtain your own appraisal, and the offer is higher than the appraisal value, you may end up having the offer fall through at the last minute. By obtaining your own pre-sale appraisal, you'll know that the asking price is realistic and one that a lender will agree to.
Talk to the Neighbors
Before you put your home on the market, you should let your neighbors know that you're selling. You should also give them advance warning each time your home is going to be shown to perspective buyers. This is particularly important if your neighbors are prone to behaviors that might turn off perspective buyers – such as nude sunbathing or unruly children. By providing advance warning, your neighbors may be willing to forego embarrassing behavior until after you've sold your home.
If you're going to be selling your home, be sure you're prepared for the long-range goal. The tips provided above will help you avoid potential pitfalls that could bump your home out of escrow and back on to the market. For other tips on how to ensure a trouble-free home sale, be sure to speak to your realtor.
