You've outgrown your existing home and need to move into something larger. You have a wonderful job offer in another city and need to move. Your family has grown up and it’s time to find a smaller home.

Whatever the reason, selling your home is a critical part of a major life change. Like any change, it can be stressful. But knowing what to expect and how to manage it can help you move through the process more comfortably.

Selling your home involves four distinct but interrelated steps:

Pricing

Marketing

Negotiating

Closing

PRICING

Pricing your home is a complex task that requires the expertise of an experienced real estate professional. Consider the following:

• Arriving at the optimal price requires evaluation and understanding of current market conditions and the marketable features of your home.
• The closer your home is priced to fair market value when it first comes on the market, the more likely it will sell quickly at the highest price.
• The higher your home is priced above market value, the fewer number of buyers will look at it. If the listing price is set too high, potential buyers may not even consider it.

Some factors we use to establish an optimal listing price for your home include:

• Determining the selling price of recently sold properties with attributes similar to yours. This differs from the asking price, which may be higher or lower than what the home was listed for.
• Determining what other properties are competing for the attention of buyers right now.
• Determining what properties have not sold. This is a good indicator of what prices buyers are unwilling to pay under current market conditions.
• Arriving at a listing price that is attractive enough for buyers to request showings and make acceptable offers.

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MARKETING

Posting a sign in your yard and placing your home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is just the beginning of the critical phase of marketing your home. The explosion of communication media has created virtually unlimited channels for promoting your home to potential buyers.

Marketing also involves getting your home ready to go on the market. We can advise you on some additional things you need to consider, including:

• What – if anything – you should repair or replace to make your home more attractive to potential buyers.
• What cosmetic enhancements will make your home more appealing, such as a new paint job or different landscaping.
• Whether your home should be “staged” by professionals who will remove some of your personal items and possibly bring in more neutral furnishings to allow potential buyers to envision the home as theirs rather than yours.

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NEGOTIATION

Once your home is on the market and potential buyers begin to view it, you will start receiving offers to purchase the property. Sorting through the offers and responding to them effectively is part of the art of effective negotiations. As offers are presented, we will work with you to obtain the best possible price and terms by: 

• Making sure buyers are qualified and pre-approved for financing.
• Responding to the best offers with counter-offers regarding price and terms.
• Developing a clear and binding contract with the purchaser of the property that assures you of a smooth transaction and protects you from future litigation.
• Arranging for inspections, loan documents, contingency removals and insurance.

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CLOSING

One an offer has been accepted and a contract signed, a great deal of legal paperwork must be managed. We will arrange for escrow and title companies and work with them throughout the process to be sure the transaction is completed quickly and smoothly. We will also help you understand the myriad documents that need to be reviewed and signed to complete the sale. We will remain intimately involved in the whole process until escrow is closed and we have turned the keys over to the new owner. And we will remain available to you should issues arise after escrow has closed.

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