Thinking of Selling Your Home in Memphis? Read This First

Are you thinking of selling your home in Memphis? If so, we want to make sure you do everything you can to get the most money possible. Before you put your house on the market there are a few steps you need to take to get it ready for sale. 

These steps can not only help you sell your home for more money but will likely help you sell it faster as well. Keep reading for a quick guide on everything you need to know about selling your home in the Memphis area.

1. Research the Local Real Estate Market

If you’re thinking of selling your home, the first thing you need to do is get an idea of the local housing market. For example, is the real estate industry in a buyer’s market or seller’s market?

A buyer’s market means there are plenty of houses for sale, and therefore, a lot of competition among sellers. When selling during a buyer’s market, expect to compromise on your asking price and field a lot of negotiations.

If you’re selling in a seller’s market, however, there will be fewer homes for sale and multiple interested buyers. In this case, you can probably raise your asking price. Buyers will have fewer choices and will be willing to pay more.

Finally, find the values of comparable homes in your neighborhood to determine a reasonable asking price. 

2. Decide If You Want to Hire a Realtor

Next, you can decide if you want to hire a realtor or not. There are pros and cons to hiring a realtor. 

For example, realtors are quite knowledgeable about the industry, have important connections and insight, and have experience negotiating with buyers. However, realtor fees can be upwards of 6% of the home’s value and are typically covered by the seller. For a home that sells for $250,000, you’re looking at $15,000.

3. Make Small Repairs and Updates

When people tour your home, they expect to see a home that’s move-in ready. They don’t want to buy a home and immediately start tackling repairs and updates.

Sure, they’ll want to customize their homes to match their style and personality, which may include some renovations. However, no one wants to buy a house with damaged drywall, water damage, peeling paint, broken floor tiles, etc.

Additionally, once you get an offer on the house, the potential buyer will pay for a home inspection. If the inspector uncovers major damages, you’ll likely need to take care of them before the transaction can proceed.

If you’re thinking of selling your home, we recommend getting ahead of the curve and taking care of any obvious issues before your house goes on the market. If you can’t afford to make serious repairs, there are some benefits to selling your home for cash.

4. Thoroughly Clean the House

The cleanliness of your home will also have a major impression on potential buyers. You don’t want a buyer to be turned-off of your home because you skimped on the cleaning. 

Before putting the home on the market, we recommend spending a week or long weekend cleaning the house from top to bottom. If you don’t have the time or inclination, you may want to consider hiring a professional cleaning service.

If you continue to live in the house as it’s on the market, try to declutter and depersonalize it as much as possible. You’ll also want to clean up after yourself every day to ensure it’s always ready for a tour. Otherwise, we recommend moving out of the house entirely.

5. Maximize Curb Appeal

As children, we were always told never to judge a book by its cover. As poorly as we listened back then, we heed that warning even less as adults. The first thing buyers will see when they drive up to your home is the exterior and they will judge your entire house accordingly.

Maximize your curb appeal by keeping the grass mowed, the vegetation trimmed, and the lawn free of debris. Make sure the driveway and walkways are clear of weeds or any other clutter.

Finally, consider putting a fresh coat of paint on the exterior of the home. This may be necessary if the paint is faded, peeling, chipping, or otherwise unsightly.

6. Consider Hiring a Professional Home Stager

If you’re thinking of selling your home, you should know that studies show staged homes generally sell 73% faster than nonstaged homes. Earlier, we recommended moving out of your home and removing all of your possession because people don’t want to feel your personal presence in the home as they tour it. 

However, buyers also don’t want to walk into an empty, hollow, and cold home either. Staging your home can make it feel warm, inviting, and luxurious.

7. Use Multiple Platforms to Market Your Home

Regardless of if you choose to work with a realtor or not, you need to be proactive about advertising your home. Using multiple platforms will help you sell your home fast.

We recommend using your social media profiles to post your home to your friends, family, and other followers. Encourage them to share your home on their profiles as well to expand your reach. You can use local buy/sell/trade pages on Facebook to market to your community at large.

You can also use listing sites like Craigslist, post your home in the newspaper, put up a for-sale sign in your yard, and more.

8. Be Prepared to Show Your Home

Preparing to sell your home means being ready to show it to potential buyers. If you’re not working with a realtor, it means you’ll have to make yourself available for walk-throughs and show the home yourself. As noted above, this means keeping the home as show-ready as possible at all times.

9. Learn How to Negotiate With Buyers

If you’re thinking of selling your home, we recommend looking into common negotiation tactics. You need to know what to expect from buyers in terms of offers and negotiations. Just as importantly, you need to understand appropriate counteroffer techniques and negotiations.

For example, if you get an insultingly low offer, don’t react emotionally or take it personally. Come back with your next offer below the asking price and see where it goes from there.

Additionally, there are other things to haggle over aside from the price. Some buyers are willing to pay the full asking price for specific inclusions such as appliances, window treatments, furniture, TVs, and more. Finally, you can negotiate who pays realtor fees, closing costs, inspection and appraisal fees, etc.

Are You Thinking of Selling Your Home?

Sometimes, homeowners don’t have the luxury of selling their homes traditionally. They may have extenuating circumstances, such as facing foreclosure, going through a divorce, or being transferred for work. In these situations, people don’t have time to prep their home for sale and wait for offers to come in.

If you find yourself in this situation, don’t worry, we can help. If you’re thinking of selling your home but need it done quickly, we can help you sell your home today. Contact us to get a cash offer on your home and we can go from there.