Selling a Home Fast in Chicago: 10 Essential Tips

The average time it takes to sell a home in Chicago has dropped. It’s 35 days shorter than it was last year. It’s a seller’s market.

Do you want to sell your Chicago home? Read on to learn about selling a home fast. Here are 10 essential tips.

1. Choose the Right Time

Sometimes selling a home is about timing. Spring is a traditionally good time to sell. Better weather and pent-up demand after the holidays mean buyers are more plentiful.

Fall can be a good time too. Chicago’s winter weather hasn’t started to be a limiting factor and vacations are out of the way. It’s important to avoid the late fall as interest might dry up as the holiday season approaches.

Sometimes, you don’t have a choice about when to sell. Perhaps your sale is the result of an urgent relocation for work, relationship breakdown, or debt problem.

There are still more ways to sell a home fast.

2. Letting Go

Prepare yourself emotionally to sell your home. You may need to let go of feelings you may have for your home. You have to think of this as a financial or business decision.

You may need to make some tough decisions. One of those decisions might be to stay in the house until it has sold. An unoccupied house is less likely to sell quickly so no matter how you feel about it, you might have to stay in the house.

You may need to make changes to the house that would not be in line with your taste. These changes may make the house more marketable. Once you decide to sell, you need to make the house attractive to other people.

3. Decide on a Price

What is the right price for your house? Whatever expectations you have for the selling price, you have to find a buyer who is willing to meet your expectations or change them.

Buyers will check your asking price. They’ll check the price of similar homes for sale in the area. They’ll ask realtors for their opinion.

These are exactly the same things you should do to assess what your expectations should be. Remember to include a discount for any major work that needs doing to your home. Also, you may need to take a reduction for a quick sale.

4. Consider a Cash Buyer

If you want to make a quick sale, consider cash buyers. Businesses who advertise “we buy houses“, may be able to buy your house more quickly than anybody else. If they can meet your price expectations and your need for speed, they could be just what you need.

5. Consider an Agent

If you want to sell your home quickly, seek expert help. An agent can provide you with advice and services that are hard to replicate on your own. If speed is important, this help can be invaluable.

Check the agent’s track record, reputation, and credentials. Always check their fees before you commit to working with them. If you want to sell quickly, work with them to secure a sale.

6. Prepare Your Home

Check the appearance of your home from the street. The so-called, curb appeal of your home is the first impression it gives to a viewer as they arrive and approach your front door.

A well-kept yard, tidy lawn, and attractive porch can help induce positive thoughts. Garbage spilled on the step, peeling paint on the door, and an uncared-for garden are off-putting.

On the inside, it may be time to tone down the decoration. Your taste may be exciting and creative. When you are selling, a bland, neutral color scheme is more likely to help viewers imagine their own decorative ideas in place.

7. Resolve Major Issues

Does your home have any major maintenance issues? If you can resolve them, do so. If time does not permit, you would be wise not to hide them but be upfront about them.

You can either reduce the asking price and tell people why the price is so good or offer a discount later.

8. Be Responsive

When you’re selling a home, you must be responsive to potential buyers. This means being flexible about arranging viewings. It means making every effort to prepare for viewings even if this is inconvenient to you.

9. Get Great Photos

Many buyers start their research on the internet. They view potential homes by looking at photographs before they ever set foot inside a home.

Given that this is the case, many homes are rejected by buyers on the basis of a photo. It’s important to make sure that the photos of your home are the best they can be. That way you are more likely to have people take the next step to view your home in person.

10. Encourage Serious Buyers

Selling a home can be hard work and may take a lot of your time. If you want to sell it quickly, it can be even more demanding. The last thing you need is time wasters.

People can express an interest in viewing your home or even engage you in a discussion about prices even though they are unable to go through with a purchase. They may do this in the hope that they can delay things until their circumstances change. They may also make false offers and lower the offer later.

Ask all prospective buyers for proof of funds before allowing them to view the property. A pre-approval letter from a lender means that the buyer can go through with a purchase after agreeing on a price.