The first step is to reach out to me and explore if now is the time to sell your home. Let’s discuss your motivations for selling and I’ll show you my comprehensive plan and to sell your home for top dollar. If you decide to sell, we will put the plan into action.
Pricing is critical for selling a home. Too high the result is little interest or showings. What is the best price? It’s a deep dive into the real estate market for your home.
I review the following sales market data for your home:
Local real estate market for the home by zip code.
Neighborhood data for sales.
Your needs to sell the home (when and proceeds from the sale).
Showcasing the value of your home’s condition is a priority to sell for top dollar. A home buyer starts their search for home online. The buyers today are seeking and demanding as much information as possible about the home they are considering purchasing. Pre-sale inspections deliver the information committed home buyers want to know before making a better offer.
I strongly encourage sellers to get pre-sale inspections performed, obtain important information and to provide seller disclosures prior to placing the home on market.
Providing these key reports, and disclosures helps any buyer purchase with confidence when they make an offer on your home better.
Don’t you want everyone who is shopping for a home to be able to find it? This is the high level marketing plan for every home I sell which is further customized to properly promote your home virtually better.
Here are the following online and direct marketing activities once the home is listed to the public:
Everyone needs to feel safe while selling and/or buying a home. Is safety a concern to you? The California Association of Realtors has created guidelines for “safely” showing your home. Home buyers and buyer’s agent are to review the information online before making an in-person showing.
When “in-person” showings of you home are scheduled. I’ll make sure:
Buyers are qualified prior to viewing (proof of funds, loan approval or loan commitment letter)
You have at least 2 hours to get your home and property ready
I will attend all showings
Prompt feedback to the sellers within hours after the showing
Once an offer is received, we will meet to discuss the terms and conditions of the offer and make sure it’s fair and better to you. It’s important to respond quickly and keep the buyer’s high interest and fear of missing out (FOMO) working for you to get their best possible offer for your home.
If you aren’t comfortable with meeting face-to-face, we can use a video conferencing/chat app: Facetime, Google Hangouts/Duo, Skype, Zoom, etc. to review any and all offers we receive for the property if possible.
Any paperwork needed to be signed by the buyer and seller have been using a electronic signature platform like DocuSign to virtually sign. Electronic signatures for the real estate contract have been used for almost 5 years by my business and I’ll help you learn how to use the app. Electronic signatures has sped up the transaction for buying and selling your home making it better.
The paperwork for real estate has been replaced by virtual docs and electronic signatures. This has greatly sped up the sales process and kept all parties on task and time for completing a sale.
We have been using online transaction management for selling and buying a home since 2014. We believe this is the best way to keep on top of the multitude of forms, addendums, and agreements used to sell real estate.
Rest assured, any help or training will be provided as it has in the past to get you comfortable with the software used to electronically sign.
Rest assured that the important timelines and contingencies for the sale of your home are being managed safely and legally by local escrow companies during COVID-19.
What’s the next step?
Reach out and contact me. We can discuss your needs and how we can better work together to sell your home.
My goal as your listing agent is primarily broken into three parts. Making your home ready to sell for more money, getting a great offer for you to accept, completing the sale.
Part 1 – Getting Ready To Sell And Making Your Home Sell For More
My goal is when potential buyers find your home it’s the one they want to see. Buyers find your home first online, and we need to make it standout.
First and foremost, to promote online, the beauty, quality and condition of your home so potential buyers want to tour your home. The goal also extends to the agents representing these potential buyers.
To take the online interest in your home and get multiple offers. This is best accomplished by pre-sale inspections, disclosures and reports. Plus, details like utilities, maintenance, neighborhood information, etc.
Promote the home to the community of real estate professionals and businesses to maximize the interest for your home. Real estate is still a contact sport, email and direct mail is still very relevant to make buyers aware of your home.
Although online real estate websites have made the search for home easier there are still many parts of the buyer journey still falling short. From my experience Buyers aren’t being delivered enough information on the quality and condition of the home they are looking at. It’s part of the process that I’ve become really focused on.
A successful home sale is more than just an offer, it’s an online story the Buyer can follow and believe. I think much like a “CarFax” for buying a car, listing agents need to do more to promote the quality and condition of the homes they sell. I’ve seen this approach to selling validated time and time again when I was part of SILVAR selling real estate in the Bay Area. To be frank, it is something that should be the standard for selling in Placer County.
We want to price your home for multiple buyers. Pricing is critical for selling a home. Too high the result is little interest or showings. Too low, we didn’t reach the buyers willing to offer the most money. What is the right price? It’s a price that creates high demand for multiple offers on your home.
I review with the Seller the following market data for their home:
Local Real Estate Market for the Home by Zip Code
Neighborhood Data for the sales
Strength of the schools
Comparable Homes in the neighborhood
Evaluate the quality and condition based upon the pre-sale inspections relative to active, pending and sold homes for the home to be sold.
Seller’s needs to sell the home (when to sell and net proceeds from the sale).
The first days on market are critical for market activity and multiple offers. From my experience a successful launch is validated by multiple showings in the first days. If the home is priced properly, we should receive more than one offer.
Here are the following marketing activities once the home is on market:
Online listing of the home on 1,000s of syndicated real estate websites
Online portal for home inspections, disclosures and reports
Feature Listing on https://www.stanwickre.com
Email Campaigns to my clients, active buyers and local real estate agents
Promotion at the local Realtor Association marketing meeting (PCAOR)
Social Media Promotions (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube)
Appointment Only Open House Weekend Scheduled and Event promoted
Feedback/Follow up from Showings
Part 3 – Offers/Accepting an Offer/Contract to Close
If we have worked together and price the house right, we will get an offer that can be successfully negotiated to become an accepted offer. Now that we have now an accepted offer, we now begin the process of removing contingencies and conditions to complete the purchase. Because we have done pre-sale inspections and reports we have gone a long way to helping the Buyer get all the information they need to complete their buyer investigations.
Let’s go over a typical closing I see after a home is in contract. Here is the basic steps and timelines for the Closing:
Escrow is opened per the purchase contract.
Buyer deposits earnest money into the escrow with 3 days.
Seller provides all seller disclosures, inspections, and reports to the Buyer.
Buyer makes any additional inspections or reports to be completed within 17 days after the offer was accepted.
Buyer completes any financing contingency including an approval within 21 days.
Buyer removes contingencies to complete purchase within the typical 30 day time period.
Approximately 5-7 days before the close of escrow Seller signs documents to sell the home.
Within 3-5 days before the close of escrow, Buyer signs any loan documents, brings funds to close.
On the close of escrow, the escrow officer reviews the escrow instructions (contract conditions), reviews funds for the purchase, and releases the transfer documents to the county.
The home is transferred/recorded to the new owner/Buyer on the close of escrow.
The Buyer’s agent delivers the keys per the instructions for possession of the home by the Buyer.
There has never been a better time to sell – Let’s Talk
Are you eager to get your house on the market? To create an MLS entry, hold an open house, and potentially get some buyers on the line?
Not so fast.
When it comes to selling your house, there’s some groundwork that needs to be laid. It’s only by attending to the fundamentals that you can ensure your home is truly listing-ready… and maximize the odds of selling quickly, for full asking price (or at least close enough).
So what are these preliminary steps? What’s the best way to sell a house? Here are some of our tips.
Steps to Take Before Selling Your House
Decide how you’re going to sell your home. There’s more than one way to put a house on the market. Are you going to work with an agent? Or maybe you want to sell your house yourself, going the FSBO route? All of these approaches have their pros and cons.
Appraise your curb appeal. In real estate sales, first impressions are everything… and the best way to sell a house is to make sure it looks perfect. That means attending to your landscaping, pressure washing your front walkway, repainting the exterior, installing a new front door… whatever is necessary to make sure your home looks appealing at first blush.
Get rid of your clutter. You’re not selling stuff; you’re selling As such, when it comes to how to sell your house quickly, your best bet is to get rid of as much clutter as you can. You may want to consider renting an external storage unit while your home is on the market.
Take down some of your personal decor. No, you don’t want your home to look totally empty, but you do want to get rid of some of your personal photos and knick-knacks. Remember, you need buyers to be able to see themselves living in the space. That can be hard when, everywhere they look, they see reminders of your
Go neutral. You may love the purple wall in your living room, or the lime green windowsill in the master bedroom. Chances are, your buyers aren’t going to like such bold color schemes. Whenever you can, repaint your interiors to be as neutral as can be.
Make small repairs. You may not be a licensed handyman, but you can definitely walk through your house, take note of small issues, and fix as many of them as possible. Loose faucets? Doors that aren’t quite aligned right? A few stray nails sticking out of the back deck? Buyers (and home inspectors) will notice these things, so make repairs when you can.
Add plant life. You don’t need your home to seem like a greenhouse, but a little greenery can add color, freshen the air, and make the whole place feel more welcoming. Some pretty, seasonally-appropriately plant life on the front stoop can be especially beneficial.
Do a deep cleaning. If you’re wondering how to sell your house quickly, well, you can’t go wrong by making it squeaky clean! You may even want to bring in a professional cleaning crew to make sure the home is spotless.
Think about your staging. Staging is the act of decorating your home, and arranging furniture, in a way that emphasizes your space and makes the whole place look as accommodating as possible. If you work with an experienced real estate agent, they may help you with the staging. If not, you can consider hiring a professional staging service.
Pick the right price. The most important step in any home listing is the pricing. Go too high and you’ll turn buyers away. Go too low and you’ll leave money on the table. Make sure you work with your agent and/or check comps, as well as weigh other market factors, and come up with a price that is competitive and fair.
Your home is listed, and you did your list price homework with your agent. It’s on the market, but is it the right price? There was all the pricing tactics and strategy ad nauseum of setting the right listing price. Now it’s showtime, and decisiveness based upon showing activity of your home, goes a long way to ensuring a successful sale of your home. Here is the infamous fair market pricing pyramid for selling a home.
The Right Price Maybe…
A good real estate agent has a process for setting the market price. Unfortunately, most of the time real estate agents ultimately defer to the seller’s wants and specifically the price the seller wants to sell the home for. If the agent doesn’t see the price the same as the seller, the Seller will find an agent who will list the home at the seller’s price. This seller price is often influenced upon a nearby sale, or home pending, or just a feeling that the seller’s home is worth more. In the end the right price is validated by an offer. In order to sell any home, a listed home needs showing, the more showings, the more validation that the pricing is often right. Sellers are often faced with the big challenge in a hot market of the extremes of no showings or plenty of showings but no offer or. These all are major indicators of the interest and willingness to make an offer on your home. However, please be aware that the only showing that matters are the one that makes an offer.
Indicators of the Incorrect List Price
A “hot” seller’s market is often thought of as multiple offers over listing price. This is not necessarily true. It’s often too many buyers and too little inventory driving the activity. In real estate agents talk about the “pricing” pyramid. Another pricing concept is the higher the price the fewer the buyers. Right now, a home priced under $620,000 (This is driven by conventional loan limits) will have an accepted offer/pending sale in less than 15 days. The 30-day in contract is the key metric Seller’s should be aware of. For the next pricing tier, $620,000 to $1,000,00 the Seller should have an accepted offer in 30 Days. For homes over $1,000,000 the home should be in contract in 45 days. If you’ve missed these metrics, not only have the buyers passed on your house. You are now chasing the market.
Days on Market for an Accepted Offer Based Upon List Price
List Price
Pending Sale Within
Under $620,000
15 Days
$620,000 to $1,000,000
30 Days
$1,000,000 and Over
45 Days
No Showings after 5 Days or Open House
This is a red flag you have missed the price in a hot market. As a seller you need to talk ASAP to your real estate agent and discuss a price reduction or incentives to sell your home (pay for closing costs, repairs, Seller credit). If your home is being sold “as-is” you may want to temporarily take it off market and address issues that you think are hurting buyers from viewing your home.
Too Many Showings With no Offers
If you receive over 3 viewings without an offer by qualified buyers in the current market in South placer, you have missed on the price. If you had an open house with great turnout (5-10 groups of buyers per day the house was open) your listing price is too high. What is a qualified buyer? Your agent should be asking buyers agents or perspective buyers their qualification to buy a home in your price range (are they approved, how will they purchase), why the interest in your home (number of bedrooms/features are a match), and timeframe to buy (ready buyer).
Too Many Offers on Your Home
If you have more than two multiple offers over the listing price in the first week of being on market you have “underpriced” the home. Granted that homes under $300,000 in South Placer will more often than not receive multiple offers are they over asking the asking price? The challenge with multiple offers is who is the best buyer? If often not who offered the most in price. Your real estate professional should be able to help you determine who the best buyer is looking at the terms and conditions for the purchase. Verification of funds, and other qualifications of the buyer matter. Contingencies also have to be carefully considered. Choose carefully and be aware too many offers especially above listing price is not necessarily the “right” price for your home.
Contingent Offers
Contingent offers are often made on homes that are not priced correctly of have been on the market for thirty days without an accepted offer (pending sale). These offers in general are not necessarily bad offers but the contingency if accepted may keep your home off the market too long (60 or more days) and if the Buyer doesn’t perform you may have fewer buyer available if the home goes back on market. In general, if the contingency is over 30 days, it’s an offer that may not perform (the contingency to sell a home is often this big issue for performing). Again, a good real estate agent should be able to help you make the right decision.
Incorrect Listing Price Impact – Chasing the Market
Chasing the market is when a home’s days on market is greater than the pending sale status, i.e. overpriced. Now the seller is competing with every new listing and being compared to every sale for a house that was on the market too long. This will often result in offers that are 10s of thousands of dollars less than the list price. In the age of the internet, the homebuyer is updated within minutes of a new listing being available. These buyers are willing and able to purchase your home. Don’t disregard this important metric, at this point, the best buyers have passed on your home. Price is the now the only factor that will drive the activity and an offer. You should be seriously considering a pricing reduction strategy to incrementally lower the price until you receive an offer. Accepting this strategy is extremely painful to do, but the “watchers” of your home online will eventually see the price as an opportunity to view and make an offer.
Hope is the 4 Letter Word ….
That should never be used in conjunction for selling your home. Sellers and their agents shouldn’t hope that it sells. The goal is to get your home on market and to get the best ready willing and able buyer to make an offer and complete the purchase. In a hot seller’s market like South Placer, showing activity leads to offers. The buyers are there especially in the bottom third of the home pricing pyramid (Under $620,000 list price), and the right price is the one that receives an offer. Just be sure to realize that a hot market only means that a home will sell in a more reasonable amount of time. It doesn’t mean multiple offers, over list price, and a seller can place conditions to sell the home than creates a long escrow. If you have questions reach out to your real estate professionals and guide you selling in any real estate market.
Instant Offers from iBuyers are bringing a new way to sell your home. But is it really the best way to sell or one option that should be explored when selling your home?
I think the answer is complicated and not simple but it’s definitely something if available to a home seller they should consider and investigate. Less start with the basics.
What are Instant Offers and what they mean for potential home sellers.
What are Instant Offers?
Simply put – Instant Offers are a whole new way to sell your house. They allow you to sell your house for cash in as little as two weeks, without ever having to show your home or have an open house. Better yet, they are bona fide, and a real offer to purchase your home.
So, who is making Instant Offers?
Tech companies primarily, backed by vast sums of venture capital money. They have billions of dollars to make offers and ultimately purchase homes. The leaders are Zillow and Opendoor. You also have companies like Knock and Offerpad and new players entering the field almost every day now.
The big question. Should you care about Instant Offers?
If you are thinking about selling your home – YES — you should care. Instant offers are available for your home in the South Placer market area. However, the price points that the homes are being resold at are not as high as you think. If you think your home is worth more than $500,000, an instant offer may not be an option.
Warning: iBuyers paid significantly less for these homes
If you think your home is a potential candidate for purchase by an iBuyer. What’s the next step? You should get an offer from as many of these companies as possible. Compare their offers! Then pick the best one, or decide to go with the normal home sale using a real estate pro.
Why Would I Want an Instant Offer?
For certain sellers who want or need to sell fast, don’t want buyers tramping through their house or need the surety of closing, Instant Offers are a viable way of selling your house.
An Instant Offer is a Real Offer if it’s Available for Your Home
Even for those of you that want TOP dollar for your home, requesting an Instant Offers are valid data points for a quick sale of your home. Time on market is money not in your bank account.
Cliff Can Help
There is so much to discuss about Instant Offers. Let me help you decide if it’s right for you. Questions and comments? Just give me a text or call.
