ClickCease

June 3, 2020

Steps to Selling a House by Owner

Steps to Selling a House by Owner

Need to sell your house fast? Believe it or not, it’s possible to sell your house fast and get paid in cash in two weeks or less even if you have to sell your house as-is. And you don’t even need a realtor.

How to sell your house in 5 days, but what you do need, is a reputable and professional real estate investment firm to guide you through the entire process from start to finish, so you get the most money for your house.

Why sell fast, as-is, for cash?

While most people are in a position to sell their home the more ‘conventional’ way (using a real estate agent or listing it by owner), some people find themselves in life circumstances beyond their control.

It could be a stressful divorce, or you’ve recently lost your job. Sometimes it’s a job transfer. Perhaps you simply need to move out, but you don’t have the cash to improve the property. You ask yourself, “What’s the best way to sell my house fast? Do I really have to deal with a real estate agent?”

Whatever your situation, the trick is finding the right buyer, one that understands your hardship – and helps you navigate the sale quickly, honestly and respectfully.

Sell Your House
Sell Your House

Compare a regular real estate sale to a cash sale

If you use a traditional realtor agreement, it’s highly unlikely you’ll be able to convert your home into cash in two weeks or less. The typical real estate transaction process simply isn’t set up to capitalize on speed.

Unfortunately, if you choose this route, the fastest you’ll be able to close is usually 30-45 days. And you don’t often have control over the final closing date because that’s often up to the buyer.

Other factors that affect your closing date? Does the buyer have a contingency to sell their current home first? What time of year is it (homes typically sell faster in the spring and early summer)? How fast are homes moving in your neighborhood or market? Is your home in great condition, or do you need to make a lot of repairs?

Depending upon your specific needs or situation, waiting such a long time to sell your home may not be an option.

How does the typical real estate process work? About 45 days before listing your home you would need to hire a real estate agent.It is important to choose an agent who is licensed, qualified, and knows your area.

Do some research. For example, Zillow has a complete listing and star-rating of your local real estate agents. But don’t forget that realtors charge a substantial commission for their services. Plan to pay that agent up to a 6% commission at closing.

What else can slow down a traditional real estate transaction? Very few homes are perfect and ready to sell without having to do even minor cosmetic repairs or correct anything that might turn off a buyer.  

Even if you can skip an expensive and lengthy kitchen or bathroom remodel, you’ll still need to fix or replace items like doors and windows that don’t close properly, dripping facets or that loud, ugly avocado green dishwasher.

And remember, it’s not just your house you have to worry about. You’re competing against other houses for sale in the Sacramento area. If other homes have remodeled kitchens or baths, your home might not look as good to the buyer – which means you won’t get as much for your home as you might think.

Even if you aren’t making any significant repairs, you still have to get the house presentable for showings to prospective buyers. You might even need to incur additional monthly expenses like storage unit rental. At a minimum, you’ll need to get rid of all the clutter and toss the ratty furniture that ruins the look of the home.

The real work in a traditional real estate sale doesn’t end when you list the house. Your goal is to keep the house looking as much like a model home as possible. You’ll have to remove personal items and make sure the house looks tidy all the time. And your realtor will have to take professional photos and videos for the listing.

You know what a headache it is to have the house looking perfect with a few hours’ notice and you have to scatter when potential buyers show up unexpectedly. That means that you need to keep the home clean at all times. Make those beds every morning. Keep the bathrooms clean and the dirty socks off the floor. If you’ve got kids, you know that’s no easy feat.

Most homeowners trust that working with a real estate agent means that offers will automatically come rolling in. Or not. If it’s not…you (and your agent) may have overpriced the home and you have to drop your price.

After all, the quickest sales get the higher prices and the longer your home stays on the market, the less likely it is that you’ll get your full asking price.

Even in a hot market like Sacramento, you should expect it to take an average of 68 days to sell your home. This includes the 30 days between getting an offer and closing. And it could be longer.

How does a quick cash sale work?

As you can see, selling your house quickly for cash offers many cost advantages. So how does the process work? It’s simple…

  1. First, you’ll need to estimate what your home is worth and how much you could save in repair and/or real estate commission fees. A good place to start is to use an instant offer calculator like Property Sales Group’s.
  2. Contact a reputable real estate property investment company. Be sure to they’re licensed and experienced in handling fast cash real estate deals. Check out the company’s reviews and see if they offer a money-back guarantee and stand behind the offer.
  3. Schedule a quick consultation and walk-through of the property.
  4. Review and sign the cash offer agreement. Once you accept the cash offer, the investment group should handle all the paperwork.
  5. You get money into your bank account in about 2 weeks or less.

In summary, you can try to get a higher price for your home by hiring a realtor. But be prepared for high commissions, closing costs, repairs, etc. You’ll block out at least two months trying to sell the home. And be prepared for last-minute, unexpected surprises or hassles like buyers not getting qualified for the full amount of financing – or backing out at the last minute.

And if you do your homework, run the numbers and decide that selling your house for cash fast is your best option, consider how a firm like Property Sales Group can help make the process fair, easy and stress-free.

Here’s how we can help make selling your home faster…