Important Things to Figure Out Before Selling Your House

We’re hitting the busiest season for home sales, and you may be deciding whether or not you’re ready to sell your home. However, there are a few important things to figure out before selling your home. Overlooking those things could end up costing you in the long run, and ruin potential deals for you. Let’s outline the biggest issues you need to decide or resolve before you put your home on the market to ensure that closing goes as smoothly as possible.

Your Home’s Worth

Knowing your home’s worth is important for several reasons. First, knowing this before you put it up for sale ensures you don’t over-price it for the market. Second, it can lead you to assess its honest condition.

You might need to make repairs or mark down the price depending on market conditions. A hot market could result in you getting more for the house than your asking price, but a cold market could force you to market it down to sell it soon. If you still aren’t certain what your home is worth, pay for a professional appraisal.

The Right Agent

Choose a good real estate agent if you want to sell your home. Your home is probably your biggest asset, and the higher price a good agent can secure you is always worth it. Furthermore, the best agents can move your home quickly. You don’t want to pay the carrying costs for your home for several extra months because your friendly agent doesn’t know how to move it.

Another factor is the terms of service. Ask questions about the listing agreement before you sign up with an agent. Are you expected to pay the buyer and seller’s agent commissions? And what are those commissions? However, you need to do your research regarding their track record. Do they actually sell homes for the listing price? Do they sell homes quickly without discounting them too much?

Title Issues

You want to avoid title issues. If there are other heirs to the property or multiple mortgages against the property, it will be almost impossible to sell until the legal issues are resolved. This is why it’s important that you work with a reputable title company to make sure that everything is ordered with the title. A North Miami title company like Bay Title Company, for instance, will be able to help you clean up the title after you pay off the debts or resolve ownership of the property. They might also find unknown title liens like a mechanic’s lien that could throw a wrench in the whole selling process.

What You Must Disclose

Local law will outline what disclosures you’re required to provide. You may be legally required to disclose the lead paint in the back room of a century-old house, the damage from termites killed five years ago, or a dispute over a major home renovation project that’s currently clouding the title for instance.

You want to disclose any minor or major problem with the house when it is being shown. You may be afraid that this will hurt the odds of selling it, but you will certainly lose the trust of potential buyers if they find out about the problem during a home inspection. You could also be sued if they only find out about the problem later. When it comes to roof problems, pest problems and HVAC equipment, the repair bills and legal bills will be costly.

The Legal Paperwork

Before you list your home for sale, you want to find a number of legal documents. This list includes but isn’t limited to the original sales contract, copies of your homeowner’s insurance policy, any HOA documents and the mortgage or proof it has been paid off. You’ll get extra points if you can produce maintenance records for the home such as when the furnace and air conditioner were inspected or repaired.

Closing on the real estate deal includes signing the final paperwork and handing over the keys. But you must get the necessary work done in advance if you want a closing to happen as fast as possible.

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