Homeowners selling their house are often surprised with how long the process takes. With the average sale lasting over 6 months, many people ask the question, how can I speed things up and sell my house fast? We know how stressful it is, which is why we’ve put together some of the best ways to shorten your sale and get things moving.
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Pick the right agent
As a homeowner, having the wrong agent when you look to sell can be catastrophic and, in the worst cases, result in losing your sale.
Ask plenty of questions, and remember, in a lot of cases, the difference between a good sale and a bad one is the agent used. You want to move forward with someone who keeps you in the loop and is easy to contact if there are any problems; if you have to chase the agent for information before you’ve even signed to sell with them, this is an indicator that you should look elsewhere.
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Stage your home
Staging your home means making it look a certain way for your viewers to make it more attractive and desirable. You should stage the house before you have your advertising photos taken, as this is likely where you’ll see your potential buyers coming in from. If your property pictures aren’t very good, there’s a strong chance that your house will get dismissed in favour of others that have got better photos, delaying your sale.
Before you host any viewings, move through each room of your home and make sure that they look the best they can – open all of the curtains to let in as much natural light as possible, and keep each room organised and tidy. Potential buyers tend to be very fickle and can be put off a property for the smallest reason, so spending some time staging will prevent them from losing interest in your house over something that you can quickly solve.
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Decorate before you put it on the market
A house that’s been recently redecorated will always look better than one that hasn’t, so it’s worth taking time before you advertise your home to redecorate and make sure it looks the very best it can. Repaint the interior, and any exterior fences or gates to make them look newer, and think about the colours that you’re picking – light, neutral colours are the best option as they’re less likely to put off any potential buyer, as well as making rooms look more spacious.
You can redecorate on any budget, but if you’re looking to sell as quickly as you can, it’s often worth spending a little more and updating a room in the house to make it more desirable. Bathrooms and kitchens are the best rooms to renovate, as this will also increase your value – letting you sell for a higher price and on a faster timescale.
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Check your asking price
Sometimes, homeowners will put their house on the market and find that they’re getting little to no interest. If this happens, your sale could take a lot longer than average, with some houses taking years to sell. In these cases, the problem often lies with the asking price. Your estate agent will usually guide you when setting the asking price, but most of them will overestimate the value as they think that’s what you want to hear. In reality, your buyers will almost always come in under the asking price, which is closer to the actual value of the property. An asking price being too high will put off the majority of buyers, especially if other houses offer similar features to yours in the neighbourhood and are cheaper.
Setting your price too low can also result in issues, which is why it’s so important to research and confirm that you’re setting the best possible price for the house. If a buyer sees a house with a very low asking price, they will usually assume that there’s a fault with the property, and that it will cost them to rectify it. This will put the majority of buyers off and mean that you could be losing out on your sale due to bad pricing.
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Look at other ways to sell
Selling on the open market is the most traditional way for homeowners to sell their houses, but this is often a slow process, and for those who are looking for something faster, there are other options. Some sellers will look at taking their house to an auction; this is one of the fastest ways to sell, but it can also have a lot of risks involved as you don’t get to decide the final selling price. In an auction, the highest bidder wins, and while there can on occasion be a bidding war to drive the price up, this isn’t very common, and you’ll generally sell for a lower price.
A more popular option is to sell with a quick sale company. This allows you to sell your house much faster than the open market while having more control of the final sale price and is a great choice for those who are relying on selling in a shorter timeframe.
Selling a house can take a long time, but with these tips, you’ll be able to find what works for you and get things moving much faster!
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