1. Know The Market Value Of Your Home.
Its important to understand that emotional attachment does not warrant monetary value. Do not confuse “how much the house is worth to you” with “the actual market value of the house”.
Often homeowners decline fair offers, thinking their home is worth a lot more only to realize 6 months later, they would have pocketed more money had they sold it then. This is because now they have paid 6 months worth of holding costs (mortgage payments), taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, and lawncare while the property sat on the market. The longer you hold on to the property the less money you will profit when you eventually sell it.
To find the market value of your home, get 3 agents to give you a Comparative Market Analysis. (CMA). If 2 out of the 3 CMA’s match, it is a good indication the analysis was accurate. If all 3 CMA’s vary all over the place, something is wrong! Find more agents.
2. Price Your House For A Quick Sale.
The lower the price, the faster it will sell. So how do you find the right price?
Price It (Slightly) Below Market Value.
Need to sell fast? Now that you know what the market value of your house in its current condition, you have a solid understanding how much you can list it for without being taken advantage of. Price the house slightly below market value to get noticed by buyers that otherwise would be overwhelmed by all the other houses for sale in your area you are competing with. The challenge is finding the perfect compromise between time it takes to sell and how much below market value you are willing to sell it for.
3. Eliminate Potential Hurdles.
Be sure you can produce a clean title. Be sure there are no liens (money owed) against the property, you are not behind on taxes and the house is not a complete disaster. If none of this is within your control, be honest and upfront about it from the start. Even in the most dire of circumstances you can get your house sold fast, even if the house is in extremely poor condition. The key to selling fast is open and honest communication!
Selling fast and selling for cash are 2 very relatable concepts. If you need to relocate in a hurry due to a job, need to pay for sudden medical bills, or for whatever reason you may have that demands you to sell your house fast, you want to look for people that can pay cash for houses.
People that do not need approval from banks or their financial institutions or people that already have been approved can move through the transaction of buying your house faster. The problem with pre-approved buyers is that when buyers that want to buy a house that is in less-than-ideal-condition can be met with obstacles from their financial institutions as they will not approve a purchase of houses in less-than-ideal-condition. You would then be forced to make repairs, or find a buyer that is willing to pay for your house (in bad shape) with their own cash, which is a big risk for the buyer. It will be very hard to find a conventional buyer capable of doing that.
Unless of course you are dealing with an investor. We have established that selling through an agent may not be a good idea when your house is not in (near) perfect condition.