A Guide To Selling Your Home – Part 1: An Overview
Selling your home is a big task today and the prospect of it faces an uphill task. Therefore, this article “a guide to selling your home” can be very helpful in a competitive market where savvy buyers are out in spades trying to take advantage of the buyer’s market. In recent times, finding a buyer is not straightforward and sometimes can be even a daunting task.
The real estate market is still looking grim with developers saddled with so many unsold flats and demand remains slow. According to a report by property research firm Liases Foras the unsold inventory in eight top cities of India rose by 22 per cent in 2015-2016 . This could be good news for a prospective buyer but it spells trouble for the sellers.
However, with increased concerns about delays by builders in handing over possession of their dream homes , buyers are increasingly looking at ready-to-move-in or resale properties. So, if you are considering selling your home and struggling to find a buyer for it, here are a few steps that can help you in selling it:
Give a Great First Impression Of Your Home
When a buyer comes to look at a home, he visualises it properly and also wants the full experience. So, make your house attractive before you go for finding a buyer as it’s a major selling point. Make sure to get the repairs done before you start showing your home. Also, fix those little snagging things like scratches and doorknobs that don’t work. Invest some money on small and inexpensive upgrades to the home such as getting the walls painted and de-cluttering. In fact, it will give you an edge when you negotiate the price and can be a deal breaker.
Decide who will sell the property
First, decide if you can sell your home yourself or want to use property dealers. or prefer online selling. You should also choose whether to use a sole agent or multiple agents. Generally, a property agent charges a fee of 1% of the property value. However, experts recommend exploring all these routes simultaneously. In fact, choose the agents you trust and follow their recommendations as often as you can.
Advertising and showing your property
Next, you should work with your agent and decide how to sell your property. Also, work out a plan with your broker or agent for listing, showing, pricing and selling your property. The agent takes care of advertising, showing the property to prospective buyers and helping you with legal formalities.
More recently, online real estate agents have become more popular. They help in attracting buyers directly. In fact, most of the homebuyers start their home search online. The prospect of selling your home increases when it is shown on online platforms. Buyers are increasingly looking at individual listings on the portals and prefer to negotiate directly with the seller. So, list your house on multiple portals as this is where buyers are undertaking initial research.
If you have time and willing to work hard that includes arranging for the registration and legal paperwork, then selling your house yourself can save you money. Put up notices in your housing society to generate a list of home buyers.
Start telling people of your immediate vicinity who are currently living on rents or permanent residents to sell your property. This will create opportunities for your neighbours to invite those people and relatives who are looking for a place nearby them. They will invite the prospective buyers whom they know have always wanted to live in that area.
Decide the selling price of your property
Pricing is critical for the deal and determining the selling price of your home is the most important element in the home selling process. You need to do market research. Get a broker or agent to do valuations of your home and get an idea of how much your house is worth.
Today’s buyers are well-informed about the comparable sales in the area. The buyers are in the driver’s seat due to the sluggish property market. So make a reasonable assessment of the value of your home and make it competitive.
Buyers always negotiate a discount, so be prepared to give them a discount of 5 to 10% to sell quickly. Be flexible in your negotiations. However, if an existing flat owner in the same building or society shows interest in your flat, then you are in a better position to insist on the price you seek. You must give a reasonable timeframe to close a deal because property should not be sold in haste unless you are in urgent need of funds.
Complete the sale process
Once you reach a mutually acceptable price with the buyer then he makes a payment which you need to formally accept. After that, both the seller and buyer’s lawyers work out the sale’s details to ensure both parties meet all legal and financial requirements. You can choose a lawyer to handle the legal work to transfer ownership of the property.
On the completion day, the money is transferred and the deeds of the property are transferred between the seller and buyer. The seller accepts the balance of payment from the buyer and hands over the keys to him. Finally, your lawyer will ensure that the change of ownership is registered in the concerned registrar’s office.
A Guide To Selling Your Home – Part 1: An Overview
Ajay Verma is a founder and writer of The Housing World, a real estate and mortgage news website. He brings with him 20+ years of rich experience in the real estate and mortgage industries. He has worked in senior roles in Delhi and NCR in the above-mentioned sectors.
