Do you need to sell your house in Norcross but don’t have the time? Or, perhaps you’ve already started selling but found yourself in a brick wall?
Selling a house can be difficult and tiresome, especially when you’re not well aware of the ins and outs of the real estate industry. Even if you hire a real estate agent to sell your house in Norcross, you are still encouraged to do your homework to make sure that your agent is not lying to you. Nevertheless, you still have other ways to sell your house fast than paying commission. Here, we briefly run you through some of the most popular strategies to sell a house quickly in Norcross, Georgia.
Work With a Real Estate Agent
Since this is one of the primary go-to options, we will start with this. As mentioned, even if you hire a real estate agent, it is still advisable that you validate everything your agent tells you. But don’t get us wrong, there are plenty of credible agents in the industry. If you do decide to hire one, make sure to get other people’s reviews if you can. If you don’t know someone who can refer an agent, you can do a comprehensive portfolio search online. To filter your candidates, it is recommended that the agent is:
- familiar with the real estate market in Norcross, its neighboring areas, or at least the State of Georgia
- adept at communicating (listening and explaining)
- uses relevant data for pricing suggestions
- walks you through the process and tells you what you can expect from any situation
- gives you options and not insist on what he/she thinks is best
- truthful with his/her marketing strategy (i.e., no misleading property descriptions)
If you have tapped the services of an agent but are not satisfied with his/her performance, one effective strategy to push the agent to work hard is to bring in another agent to either: work with independently or split the commission with. But take note that this is only applicable if you haven’t signed any exclusivity agreement with either of the realtors.
“For Sale By Owner” (FSBO)
The second option is to sell your house on your own. This is preferred by home sellers who do not want the presence of realtors; or those who do not want to pay commission.
The big question here is: how do you become competitive enough with all the other, more experienced realtors who may seem more credible in the eyes of buyers? Here are some tips:
1. Offer a Lower Price Than Your Comps
By lower, we don’t mean tens of thousands of dollars. If your competitors (homes for sale with similar area size and house conditions in the neighborhood as you) are selling their houses for $224,660, you can perhaps lower yours to $220,000. This shouldn’t be significant compared to the commission you’ll have to pay if you hire an agent.
Why is this strategy helpful? Because people will always go for the lower price. Let your price create a demand for your house. Once you’ve generated leads, you can now proceed to convince them personally.
2. Stage Your House Well
First impressions matter, and you’d want to spark your buyer’s imagination the first time they see your house (even if it’s just through pictures). You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to stage your home; you can just put things away temporarily and create space. While well-curated interior designs can help set your buyer’s mood, open spaces can also help them envision what they can do with the space! So if you are on a tight budget, you can stage your house this way:
- store personal belongings away
- retain furniture and stuff that have colors that are friendly and snug
- raise your curtains/blinds and let natural light in
- clean the house and wipe all the surfaces squeaky-clean
- sweep dead leaves off outside your house
- rearrange the furniture to create space
- bring in some fresh indoor plants or flowers
- use newly-washed and pressed linens, rugs, towels, curtains, and the like.
Prepping your house isn’t only for potential visitors, but also for your listing. Photos speak a thousand words, and good photo contents invite more potential buyers in.
3. If You Are Renovating, Do Not Exaggerate
By exaggerating, we mean bringing in upgrades that are way more than what is observed in the neighborhood. You’d want to keep the same vibe or atmosphere with other houses in the community. This is because some people may want to buy your house just because they love how the neighborhood feels. For example, if the houses in your community have neutral-colored exteriors, it might be better not to bring in bold colors.
4. Study All the Needed Documents and Surveys
When you talk to your potential buyer, you have to ensure them that you know what you are doing, and that everything is legal. To support this, you should make sure to prepare all the documents beforehand, and be ready to answer technical questions like:
- Can my spouse sign the contract on my behalf?
- Who will arrange the appraisal?
- Are there tax forms that I need to file to purchase your house?
5. Practice Negotiating
This is one of the skills that make real estate agents stand out. They know how to connect with people and bargain without disappointing the buyer. For you to be good at negotiating, you can find sample scripts online that you can practice with a friend or a family member. Make sure to gather honest feedback. The goal here is to make your buyers feel confident about their decision to buy your house.
Explore iBuyer Websites
iBuyers are relatively new in the real estate industry. The earliest iBuyers in the U.S. started around 2014. These companies will basically buy your house fast for cash, improve it, then sell it again for a higher price. All you need to do is fill out their online form and wait for their offer. They will value your house based onlocation, market, how old the house is, neighborhood, and house condition.
If you sell your house to an iBuyer, there is a smaller chance that you can counter their offer. Apart from that, expect that you will get a lower price than the average market value. If price doesn’t concern you (which is the case for many inherited or probate house sellers), then there’s no harm in considering an iBuyer.
Contact Other Professional Home Buying Companies
There are also other professional home buyers who can buy your home for cash. The difference between iBuyers and traditional home buyers, like us, is that we are more local. We know more about the Norcross real estate market than them. We also buy houses in as-is conditions, while some iBuyers will require you to do repairs before they proceed with the purchase.
If you need more help in deciding what you should do with your house, feel free to contact us anytime by filling in the form below. Or better yet, call us at (678) 318-1801!