What About The Other Guy?
So far on our journey, we’ve covered some of the basics in buying a home. We are going to let Erica handle that for a while. I need to talk to those of you who want to sell your home.
More to it than you might think
It’s a beautiful day. You and your significant other are out driving around and, if you happen to be in the market, see all kinds of “For Sale” signs in yards. They come in many shapes and sizes. Cool colors and logos. They are just inviting you to come in and drop thousands of dollars and most of the rest of your life on this investment.
Wait a minute…you mean a sign doesn’t make you want to do that?? Huh…
Insight time. You want to sell your home. You want to get as much out of it as possible. You don’t want your life disrupted by endless people calling you day and night to look at your house. You don’t want to have to always have the perfect showplace. Sorry. If you’re selling your home, you need to prepare for your world to be a little crazy for a while. You have to be ready for people to critique the place that you have built memories in, made your own, and probably have a significant emotional attachment to. You need to be ready for that. It’s not as easy as you might think, but with a little help and guidance from someone you trust, you’ll get through it. I promise.
I can do it myself
I’m not going to go over the details of doing a “For Sale By Owner”. If you want to know about it, there are countless blogs, articles, and opinions that you can easily find.
I get it. I’m a REALTOR, and I truly do get why someone would want to do it themselves. It costs money to sell your home. That comes from the bottom line going into your pocket or toward your upgraded home. Those fees are not set. We can charge whatever we want to sell a home, but in doing your research, you will notice some pretty consistent rates that REALTORS charge. The only thing I want to stress about doing it yourself is that you are potentially leaving yourself open to a lot of costly mistakes. Most people don’t have cash to purchase a home. There are a lot of regulations that could cause you problems when dealing with a buyers lender.
More than just a sign in your yard
Now that you have decided that you don’t want the stress that comes with doing it yourself, what happens next. Well, if you call me to sell your home, here’s what happens next.
I’m going to come into your home, and meet you for the first time face to face. Then I’m going to go around it, and point out things I notice that need to be addressed before the home ever hits the market. This is the point I either lose you as a client, or earn your full trust. I have done many of these appointments and have on occasion, not been called back. I’m actually OK with that. That means I did my job, and you decided I wasn’t the right fit for you.
Next (if you have decided that I’m “the one”), we are going to meet again to start the process of paperwork. This is where you actually see what it could cost you to sell your home. It’s sticker shock, but fear not! I will help you overcome this part. You see, the seller pays for both REALTORS. Not only are you paying me to sell your home, but you are paying the REALTOR that brings the buyer. You will also need to account for repairs that need to be done to the home that is required by home inspectors, appraisers and even exterminators or well/septic inspectors.
In return, I’m going to do all the research. I’ll tell you how much your home could sell for in the least amount of time. This has taken a while for me to do correctly. I have failed at this part before. Then, I took the sellers emotions out of it. You’re not hiring me to tell you what you want to hear. You are hiring me to SELL YOUR HOME!!
I’m also going to market your home to get it in front of as many eyes as possible. Truthfully, these days digital is the way to go. Most buyers are pretty serious if they actually take the time to come see it. They have done their research, and have a pretty good idea of what they want. I’m going to network and do my best to make your home stand out. I’m going to earn every penny. More importantly, I’m going to earn your trust.
I’m going to let you digest this for now. Next time I’ll go over what happens once your home is on the market, so stay tuned.
Todd and Erica McKee are licensed REALTORS in the state of Virginia, devoted to honesty and ethics above all else. Feel free to contact them personally with any questions you have about real estate via their social media platforms or through text or email.
