First Time Seller tips

Finding a trusted real estate agent to work with when selling your home can be challenging, indeed. It seems like there are a lot of real estate agents out there, but not all real estate agents are created the same. You want someone who will give you personalized attention, who has a great relationship with a top-notch mortgage broker, such as Dot Mortgage, and one who understands the real estate market and the closing process. It's best to ask for recommendations and referrals from your friends, family, and colleagues who have had success with real estate agents who have sold their homes.

Curb appeal is absolutely critical to the sale of your home. First impressions matter, and you want potential buyers to roll up to your home and immediately fall in love with it, even if they haven't stepped a foot inside your home. Admittedly, this is easier to do in the summer when there are beautiful flowers in bloom and huge shade trees in your yard. However, by ensuring your home is clean on the outside (free from cobwebs), with a nice crisp yard (well-manicured and mowed) and with a welcome mat (never underestimate the little things), you will have a leg up on selling your home.

Similar to curb appeal, you want to create the best first impression of your home, and that means staging. The number one thing you want prospective buyers to see when selling your home is their stuff in your space. They cannot see that with personal photos hung up on the walls, kids' toys scattered everywhere, and your old trophies taking up your basement. You want to remove anything that speaks to you personally, as well as anything that could be considered clutter. All of this distracts the buyers who should be looking at your space, rather than your personal belongings.

In the internet age, most people pick out homes to look at based on what they see online. If you are using your cell phone for photos, you won't have the crispness that comes with professional photos that put your home in the best light possible. Hiring a professional photographer should be seen as a necessary cost of selling a house. As trained professionals, they know the perfect angle for room photos and yard photos that will give your home sizzle on the internet and make it stand out from the crowd. Pro tip: try real estate drone videography if you truly want to make the right impression.

As a first-time home seller, you obviously want the most out of your home sale. After all, the proceeds from this home sale are most likely the money you will use to put down on your new home, so you want the most possible. That being said, you also want to be realistic on what the value of your home is. If you turn down solid offers, you could end up having your home sit for longer than it should, which can delay your future plans. Our advice is to listen to your real estate agent who will advise you on if home offers are solid or not.

There's a lot of logistics that go into selling your home, and having a checklist of everything you need to do can make the process super fast. From making home repairs requested by the potential buyers during the inspection to ensuring your home is as turnkey as possible, you can make sure there are no hiccups on your end by having your i's dotted and t's crossed. Your real estate agent can help you through the home selling process by ensuring you have your tasks completed by home closing. Contact Fox Valley Mutual Mortgage and Lisa Marie Schwartz today!