Your Realtors Guide To Selling A House In South Florida Fast
No one expects selling a home to be easy. But still, not many home sellers take the time to properly educate themselves on what’s involved in the process. If you’re selling a house in South Florida, or anywhere for that matter, knowing what to expect is the first step you need to take.
At Your Home Sold Guaranteed Realty – The Roy Pembroke Team, we want to help you learn how to sell a home in South Florida fast and for top dollar. That’s why we’ve created a step-by-step guide to help home sellers navigate the sale process.
Everything You Need to Know About Selling a House in South Florida
Through this free guide, you’ll discover how to protect and capitalize on your largest asset, reduce your stress, and guarantee to sell your home fast and for top dollar. Better yet, all the real estate information you will receive is free.
Know Why You Want to Sell in the First Place
The reason why you’re selling a house in South Florida is the first factor that will influence how you approach the process. It affects the time, money, and effort you’re willing to put into the sale.
For example, depending on why you’re selling, you may have a certain window of time to get the home sold. As a result, you may be tempted to set a lower asking price than usual to make sure it sells fast.
But by understanding your reason and only sharing it with your real estate agent, you can ensure you sell your home for the best price.
Never share why you’re selling with potential buyers. No matter how harmless you think the reason is, it could affect what happens at the negotiation table.
If a potential buyer knows you’re in a hurry to sell, they could use this to their advantage and try to get a lower price.
If a buyer ever asks you why you’re selling, it’s best to keep it vague and just say your housing needs have changed.
Below, we’ll look at several reasons why home sellers might want to sell a house in South Florida and how a potential buyer might react.
1. Transferring For a New Job
This might seem like a perfectly valid reason to share with a buyer. But, they could end up thinking you’re desperate to sell and submit a lowball offer on your property as a result.
If they know you’re in a hurry, they might stall the negotiation process and hold out in hopes of a lower price.
2. Upgrading to a Larger Home
You might want to move up to a bigger home for a variety of reasons. But, if you share those reasons with a potential buyer, it could affect their perception of your home as well. As a result, they may question whether it’s the right fit for them.
3. Downsizing to a Smaller Home
Maybe you’re an empty nester, or maybe you’re in the middle of a divorce. Either way, this could cause the same situation as moving to a larger home.
If you start pointing out all the ways your home feels too small, that may rub off on the buyer and cause them to realize it’s also too small for them.
4. Looking For a Lower Mortgage Payment
If you tell potential buyers you’re looking for a cheaper mortgage, it might cause them to wonder if the home is too expensive for them, too. Buyers are able to see the entire pricing history of a home.
So pointing out that your current mortgage is too high will cause them to apply extra scrutiny to your asking price to figure out how much they may end up paying.
This is one reason to know what your home is worth weeks before ever listing it. That way, you can feel confident about the asking price and weeding out buyers who can’t afford the mortgage.
5. Already Having an Offer on Another Home
If a potential home buyer finds out you already have an offer on your new home, they can use this to their advantage at the negotiating table.
They’ll know you’re under a deadline to get your home sold and move into the new one, especially if you want to avoid being stuck with two homes.
Set Your Listing Price Based on Where You’re Selling a House
There are several factors to consider when deciding on a listing price for your home. For example, your home’s location, condition, and whether or not you’re working with a professional real estate agent.
The asking price serves as the buyer’s first impression of the home, and it’s crucial to get it right the first time.
If you set your price too high, you risk not being taken seriously by buyers, who will then pass up your home for more fairly-priced options. But if you price it too low, you miss out on getting maximum profit.
Of course, as the home seller, you want to get as close to your original asking price as possible, if not above it.
This is why working with a professional agent is a better idea than selling a house by yourself.
Agents have the tools and experience necessary to help you come up with a fair yet competitive asking price.
Most importantly, knowing what other homes in your area sold for is the best way to set an asking price for your own home.
Homes in a Subdivision
In a subdivision, it’s much easier to see the prices of other homes for sale in the area. This also means it’s easier for potential buyers to compare other homes to yours.
Home buyers might assume your house has identical floor plans to the other homes in the area. They can’t take into account any upgrades or features your home has that make it unique and justifies a higher asking price.
Your real estate agent can help you come up with a fair price that considers all the features of your home that sets it apart from other homes in the area.
And through their marketing strategies, they can make sure potential home buyers understand these differences.
Homes in Older Neighborhoods
If you’re selling a house in an older neighborhood, it might be harder to come up with a fair asking price. This is because there’s more variability among what homes look like and what features they have.
There might not be any homes in the area that are truly comparable to yours, leaving you with nothing to base the price of your home on.
Again, this is where an expert real estate agent is essential to help you come up with an accurate pricing strategy that’s in your best interest.
For Sale By Owner (FSBO)
Some home sellers might consider selling a house on their own to save money on paying an agent’s commission.
However, selling a FSBO home is difficult, let alone getting it to sell fast. In fact, The National Association of Realtors surveyed FSBO home sellers and found that two-thirds of them said they wouldn’t do it again. The primary reasons included:
- Setting an asking price
- Marketing their home
- Liability and legal concerns
- Time constraints
But FSBO home sellers can find pricing information in a couple of ways. First, simply by researching online and observing what prices homes recently sold for and are currently listed at.
Sellers can also visit their local city hall to find public records on home sales in their community. But without an agent, you don’t have access to the latest, up-to-date market information necessary to determine a price, such as data from the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
Visit Open Houses to Set an Asking Price
Another trick for setting an accurate listing price is visiting open houses in your area. This will give you an insight into your competition and what their homes look like, what features they have, and what they’re listed at.
Aside from the asking price, pay attention to aspects of the homes like the:
- Floor plan
- Condition of the home
- Size of the home and surrounding property
- Location
- Extra features, upgrades, or improvements
Remember, if you’re serious about selling a house in South Florida fast, don’t price it higher than your neighbor’s unless it actually has more to offer.
How to Choose an Experienced Realtor Who Can Sell Your Home Fast in South Florida
So, if a realtor is so essential to setting an asking price and selling a house quickly, how exactly do you go about choosing one?
There are a number of real estate agent selection factors to consider before you start interviewing realtors in South Florida.
Many home sellers don’t pay close enough attention to choosing an agent who truly puts their needs first. Not all realtors are the same!
When choosing an agent, it’s important to focus on the numbers:
- How many homes they’ve sold
- How fast they typically sell them
- How much they usually sell them for
Then, find out how those numbers compare to the agent’s competition.
Be sure to ask the agent several key questions about their experience, like how long they’ve been in the business and how long they’ve lived in your particular community.
Why Our Real Estate Team is the Best Choice For Selling a House in South Florida
If you want a real estate agent who can sell fast, Your Home Sold Guaranteed Realty – The Roy Pembroke Team is the best real estate agency and option.
We’re an award-winning real estate team with a proven track record of selling houses across South Florida for more than our competitors, regardless of whether the market is hot or cold.
But don’t just take our word for it- we have the facts to back it up:
- We sell houses 30% faster than average agents in the area
- Our database has over 36,000 pre-qualified buyers looking for a home like yours
- We even sell homes before they’re listed on the market
- We sell homes for 7.43% more money than other real estate agencies
On top of that, we offer several Seller Satisfaction Guarantees, along with a Guaranteed Home Sale Program that makes selling a house with us as risk-free as possible.
What to Know About Fixing Up Your Home Before Selling
When it comes to selling a house fast, appearance matters. Aside from the asking price, the look of your home is the second most important factor potential buyers will consider.
Purchasing a home is partly an emotional decision, and buyers will react to everything they feel in your home. They need to be able to envision themselves and their ideal lifestyle in the home.
Preparing Your Home For Sale
The main aspects to take care of before selling your home are cleaning and making repairs. Remember, you’re not just competing against other resale homes. Potential buyers are looking at newly-constructed ones as well.
Needless to say, your home needs to be spotless and in perfect condition before it goes on the market. While you can sell it as-is, this won’t get it sold quickly or for top dollar.
So consider hiring a professional cleaning service to shampoo carpets, polish hardwood floors, and clean all the hard-to-reach areas around the house.
Hire a contractor to repair anything that needs to be fixed around your home, whether it’s minor, like squeaky door hinges, or a bigger issue like structural damage to the building’s foundation.
In addition, take the time to remove your furniture, belongings, photos, and decor from the house.
Buyers won’t be able to visualize themselves in the home if your items are still around, plus too many items could create a cluttered appearance.
Know What Home Buyers Are Looking For
When you understand what a buyer is looking for, you can use that knowledge to your advantage at the negotiation table.
It’s not surprising that most home buyers are looking for a property that meets all their needs at the most affordable price.
But when you know the buyer’s motivation, you have a better chance of controlling the process and getting the price you want.
For example, what price range are they looking for, and what’s their timeframe to move into their new home?
Try to find out how much the potential home buyer is qualified to borrow and how much of a down payment they can make.
You and your real estate agent can use this knowledge to gain an edge when negotiating.
And if you know what the buyer’s timeline looks like, you can ensure it doesn’t conflict with your own timeframe. It could turn out your interests are aligned: if the buyer wants to move in right away, then you can get the home sold fast.
What to Do if You Get a Low Offer
First things first, keep your emotions in check during the negotiation process. Selling the home you spent so much time in is an emotional process for anyone, but it’s important to detach yourself from the process.
So if you get a low offer, don’t take it personally. It’s pretty common for the first offer to be lower than the listing price. Chances are, the buyer is aware of the fact their initial offer is below what they’ll eventually end up paying for the property.
Maintain a business-like manner and evaluate it as you would any other. Take a look at whether there’s a sufficient down payment, the mortgage amount, the proposed closing date, and if the buyer has made any special requests.
Use these facts to help you turn that low offer around. Come back with a counter offer that’s right below your asking price. Your real estate agent can help you decide how much to offer. This lets the buyer know that you’re serious about the original price, and there isn’t much room for negotiation.
Sticking firmly to the original price also helps you save time by focusing only on the most serious buyers.
Consider Selling Your Home for Cash to Sell it Faster
Selling your home for cash can get it sold much faster than traditional payment methods.
This is mostly because cash buyers don’t have to jump through the same hoops as buyers taking out loans. Cash buyers are paying for the home entirely with their own funds, so the closing process moves much faster.
So, how can you find cash buyers? Find a real estate agent and mention that you’re specifically looking for cash buyers.
At Your Home Sold Guaranteed Realty – The Roy Pembroke Team, our marketing systems include cash buyers ready to buy your home, and we can match your home up with an interested buyer almost instantly.
Our database automatically finds the best-qualified prospects for your home who are genuinely interested and ready to make a purchase!
Our Real Estate Team Can Help You if You’re Selling a House Fast
If you live in South Florida, Your Home Sold Guaranteed Realty – The Roy Pembroke Team is the best choice to sell a home fast.
With our Guaranteed Sale Program, we make selling with us as risk-free as possible. We’ve helped hundreds of families in South Florida over the years, and we know we can help you, too.
Fill out the form below to get started with a free consultation.