Making the Sale
For most of the blogs on our site, we’ve focused on the purchasing, maintenance, and market considerations of buying property as a real estate investor. At some point, though, the goal of all this work is to actually sell it! After all, that’s where your return as an investor will finally manifest itself. Assuming you’ve done your homework, and dotted your i’s and crossed your t’s, when the time comes to sell the property, the work has only begun.
Pricing:
Obviously, this is one of the more important aspects, and one in which your knowledge and experience of the real estate market comes into play. We’ve covered the importance of understanding the market environment in which your property is located, and hopefully you’ve considered property values in the area and appreciation long before this point. When you’re ready to sell, knowing what your property is worth and pricing it accurately is absolutely crucial to selling your home in a timely manner (more on that in a minute). We can’t stress this next point enough: overpricing it will NOT result in higher offers, nor will it result in more chances to negotiate the price you want or need. Often, real estate is a competitive market and buyers have numerous properties to choose from that are all appropriately priced. If buyers realize that your property is overpriced, or get the sense that it may not be up to the standards of others in that price range, it will be summarily dismissed from their search.
Marketing:
It’s your job to make sure people know you’re selling, and therefore marketing your property is something you absolutely can’t neglect; after all, if potential buyers aren’t aware that your property is for sale, how can they even make you an offer? Is your contact information readily available and are you easily reachable? If you’re not always available to take calls or emails, do you have a clear voicemail message or an auto-responder for your email? It’s also extremely important to use online resources in this day and age, as consumers demand convenience and choice. No longer are they willing to rifle through a newspaper or magazine of listings, nor do they particularly care to drive around a neighborhood in search of an appealing property for sale. In some ways, you as a seller are at a disadvantage in today’s mostly-digital market due to the volume of listings all in one place and resulting higher competition, but at the same time, you’re also afforded a larger volume of potential buyers who are able to see your listing at the click of a button. Therefore, the curb appeal of your property must extend to the listing, complete with photos, a good and grammatically correct description, and an engaging list of the appealing qualities of your particular property. Remember, a potential buyer can easily click “next” to view another property if they’re not hooked by what they see in your listing.
Preparation:
Preparation is key! New property listings get a disproportionate amount of attention from potential buyers, so be ready. In other words, don’t list your property until you are absolutely ready and prepared to show it. Often, potential buyers will want to see your property within a day of contacting you, and you must be ready to move when they are or risk losing their interest. This means you should have already taken care of all the little things that experienced real estate sellers know to do in order to increase the appeal of the property, from putting out air fresheners inside the home to planting inexpensive shrubbery and flowers on the lawn and walkway. Speaking of lawns, it should go without saying that the yard should be well manicured and free of any debris, especially if you’ve been performing maintenance on the property prior to putting it up for sale. All of these things both increase the curb appeal and make the property more inviting to potential buyers.
Buyer Qualification:
This is perhaps the most difficult aspect of selling your property, particularly if you’re not using a real estate agent or haven’t much experience in selling real estate. If you’re not sure about this, it may be worthwhile to involve a real estate agent. Not only are they a bit better able to determine the quality of a potential buyer, but they also maintain a database and network of clients who may be interested in your property. If you’re using your own network, carefully vet your buyers so you can only deal with qualified buyers who will not waste your time. It’s always worth your time to build up a network of real estate contacts so this process gets easier and easier in the future. You want to make sure you avoid buyers who take months to close only to drop everything because they either can’t afford the property or are unwilling to continue. In this business, time is money, so be sure not to waste yours. Do NOT neglect contracts, and be on time in reviewing said contracts with your attorney.
Be sure to check back with us for more tools of the trade on our blog! At Get It Right Solutions, we have a strong real estate background and want to share information and tips with anyone who is thinking of getting into real estate investment. Follow us on Facebook for updates and examples of our properties!
– Get It Right Solutions LLC