Preparing to Sell Your Home: Five Ways to Shorten the Selling Process

Once you’ve decided to sell your home, work with your agent to develop a selling strategy that attracts offers, and a plan for overcoming the hurdles that can delay your sale. Here are five tips to make sure your transaction finishes as fast as possible.

1.     Trust your agent

Hiring an experienced real estate agent will make the selling process a lot smoother. Your agent is your best source of advice to position your home favorably against the competition because they get nothing until your house is sold. Tap into their insight on

• showing prep tips for attracting motivated buyers
• contractor referrals for sprucing up your property without breaking your budget.
• common expectations and restrictions to save time and energy during negotiation.

2.     Outwit the competition with incentives

With other houses nearby or in the same price range for sale, it helps to sweeten the pot for a buyer who’s on the fence. Throw in those floor to ceiling bookcases, custom window coverings or a flat panel TV. Talk with your agent about the best incentives to offer in your area and come up with a way to publicize them on all of your home’s marketing materials.

3.     Resist the temptation to hover

Resist the temptation to hang around and “help” potential buyers during their visit. This interferes with an agent’s job and makes it harder for buyers to imagine owning and living in the house.

4.     Expect to negotiate

Offers and counter-offers keep your potential sale alive. Negotiations are less stressful when you decide in advance how low you're willing to go early. Ultimately, you decide what to accept, but talk to your agent early about your expectations and stay open to his or her advice on what price best in today’s market.

5.     Cement the deal with back up offers and research

• Your house is yours until you give a buyer the keys. So, do the research and prep with a plan “B” in case something goes awry with your primary offer.
• Consider accept backup offers, and make sure your sales contract has provisions for buyer’s remorse.
• As your closing approaches, keep track of the buyer’s progress with mortgage funding.
• Double check things that can delay or stall your closing—the title search, major systems breakdowns, inspections and missing documents.

For help selling your home, call me at 317.777.1805 or email me at scott@lacysells.com.

Preparing to Buy a Home: Four Costly Mortgage Mistakes to Avoid

When preparing to buy a home, avoid these five common missteps that can increase the cost of your expenditure even more.

1. Not checking your credit report: When you apply for a mortgage, the first thing a lender will do is check your credit report. The better your credit score, the lower the interest rate you’ll receive. If you have extremely poor credit, you could even be rejected from getting a loan. Because of this, request a copy six months to a year before you plan on applying for a mortgage. That way, you have time to improve your credit score or fix errors on your credit report.
2. Changing jobs frequently: Lenders want borrowers that have consistent employment status and a steady stream of income. If you’ve bounced around from job to job, banks will think you’re a risky candidate for a loan, and you’ll be quoted a higher interest rate, or won’t be able to secure a loan at all. If possible, remain in your current job until you’ve signed your mortgage paperwork.
3. Not shopping around: Even though the Federal Reserve sets the benchmark interest rate, interest rates can vary amongst lenders, and banks often have different borrowing requirements and fees. Seek out quotes from several banks to avoid overpaying on your mortgage.
4. Not locking in your interest rate: Interest rates are always fluctuating. In order to keep the rate you were quoted, you must lock it in. If you’re unable to close on the property within a certain time frame, you could be on the hook for a higher interest rate or additional fees for extending the lock period. 

For help in buying a home, call me at 317.777.1805 or email me at scott@lacysells.com.