Preparing to Sell Your Home

You have worked hard to maintain your home and ensure that repairs were completed. It's not been that long since everything received a fresh coat of paint and everything else appears to be in good shape ... but is it, really?!

Use the checklist below to ensure that you are ready to sell your home before it ever gets listed on the market.

* Pull out a tablet of paper and a pen. These will be your instruments to identify any repairs or improvements you may have missed.

* You are now going to take a slow and meticulous walkthrough of the exterior of your home, your yard and the exterior of your home.

* Start at the front door. Walk through each room noting chipped paint, dents in doors or walls, that small edge that keeps sagging on the top of the border in your bedroom. Move on to your garage, yard and the exterior of your home.

* Your goal is going to be to look at your home from a buyer's perspective, and to make your home stands out to buyers. You might want to ask a friend to do the walkthrough with you, so that you can get an objective opinion. Take the friend's comments to heart and include them in your list.

* Note that some of the biggest mistakes that sellers make are to leave clutter, evidence of pets in their homes, and smoke odor. Clutter makes rooms appear smaller and, in turn, makes your home appear smaller. Pet and smoke odor detract from the beauty of your home. All three are a big turnoff for potential buyers.

* Don't forget to note dirty windows, chipped paint on trim of doors and window sills, Fido's dirty dog house, dead spots in the yard, etc.

* Next, buy all the supplies necessary to make the repairs or changes that you've identified.

* Get the family involved and make it a weekend project. You could make memories. Everyone will remember how they got that house on so-and-so Street ready for sale.

* Set a date to complete all the repairs and improvements.

* Once all the repairs and improvements are completed, you're ready to find a real estate agent.

* Call up three real estate agencies and ask for their top sellers. Set up an appointment to Interview the top seller from each of the agencies. Ask them specifically what they will do for you - e.g., place ad in local newspaper, place tube in front yard with sales flyers, etc. Do not prompt the sales agents. Let them tell you, then pick the one you are most comfortable will work hard for you.

* The agent you choose will put together a comparative market analysis (CMA). This is a compilation of homes that sold in the area within the last 60-90 days that are comparable to your home's statistics - e.g., # of bedrooms/baths, size, similar amenities. Have your agent provide your copies.

* Work with your agent to sell your home at a competitive price. Keep in mind that if the value of your home exceeds $50k milestones by a couple of thousand, then fall behind the mark a bit. For example, your home's value ends up to be $205,000. You may want to consider $199,500 or $199,750, instead. Or, if the value is something like $375,000, you may want to list the price as $373,200, or in that ballpark. The goal is to make your home appear to be priced much less than it is.

* Finally, in the current competitive market, it's also a good idea to list your home's sale price at a few thousand less than it's actually worth. If you keep this and the previous bullet in mind, it would serve you well to price a $235,000 home at, let's say, $231,875. Your real estate agent can help you with all that.

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