Selling your home is likely to be the biggest financial transaction you’ll ever make (at least until you maybe do it again down the track). It’s also likely to be something you’ve rarely (if ever) done before, so it’s crucial to avoid making rookie mistakes.
Read on to find out our top 5 rookie home seller mistakes, and how we help our Purple Cow clients to avoid making them.
1. Not hiring a good local real estate agent
Not hiring a good agent is arguably the biggest mistake you can make. A bad or average agent can literally cost you tens of thousands of dollars by not selling your home for the maximum possible price.
The latest figures from realestate.com show that our Purple Cow team achieves selling prices that are $73,000 higher than competing agencies in the Greater Springfield region.
You should also avoid taking the DIY approach. Selling a home is time-consuming, it requires legal knowledge to comply with all relevant regulations, and it requires superior marketing and negotiating skills to achieve a great result.
2. Using a cheap fee/free marketing agent
Always remember the old saying that ‘you get what you pay for’. Agents or agencies that offer cheap fees or free marketing aren’t going to go the extra mile to get you top dollar for your home. They will likely do the bare minimum, and once again, that will cost you money in terms of a lower selling price, not them.
Good agents and agencies will offer you a range of proven marketing strategies to maximise your selling price and far outstrip what you spend.
3. Not making your home as marketable as possible prior to listing it
There are some simple and inexpensive things you can do to maximise the marketability and selling price of your home BEFORE you list it for sale. They include:
- Tidying up your yard and garden.
- Fixing or replacing any little but noticeable things in your home like any damaged internal or roof tiles, peeling paint, leaky taps, broken floorboards or out-of-date light fittings.
- Decluttering and cleaning your home (especially kitchen, bathroom and lounge areas).
- Borrowing or renting some high-quality furniture (aka home styling or home staging).
4. Overcapitalising before you sell
It’s possible to spend too much money on your home in the hope of selling it for a higher price. That’s called overcapitalising.
Anything you spend on your home before you list it should return you more money when you sell it. If it doesn’t, you shouldn’t be spending that money in the first place.
Talk to a good local real estate agent before you do any major renovations to see if they’re worth it or not.
5. Pricing your home too high (or too low)
Pricing your home properly from the start of your sales and marketing campaign is crucial.
Whatever you do, don’t listen to your family of friends when pricing your home. Do your own research, and then ask agents as part of your evaluation process to find a good one.
The price that you come up with and the one that good agents estimate should be similar. Avoid agents that try to “buy” your listing by quoting inflated and unrealistic prices without the track record to back up their claims.
How our Purple Cow team can help you avoid making these mistakes
Like to find out more about how we can help you to sell your home in the Greater Springfield region for top dollar?
Contact us today for an obligation-free chat and experience the award-winning Purple Cow difference for yourself.