Ask for These Physical Documents When You List Your House for Sale
Listing your home for sale can feel like a bit of an uncertain time, especially if you haven't previously gone through this process. You'll feel much more confident by hiring not only an experienced listing agent but one who will also provide you with a series of physical documents before your house officially goes on the market. By having access to these documents, you'll be able to regularly read up on the process of selling so that you feel properly informed from the time the house hits the market to when the paperwork is signed on your sale. Here are some important documents to ask for.
Maintenance Plan
If your home could use some work before it goes on the market, expect your listing agent to provide you with a maintenance plan. The agent will put this plan together after touring your home and thoroughly assessing its condition. While the items on the plan will technically be suggestions, you can count on them to be good ideas that can help you get more money when you sell. Items on the maintenance plan could include changing the flooring in a room, repainting some of your walls, upgrading the bathrooms, or putting sod down in the backyard, for example.
Marketing Plan
You can also expect that your listing agent will provide you with a comprehensive plan as to how your home's listing will be marketed. This plan will typically include a series of marketing strategies, such as online listings, open houses, and physical signs in the community. It will also include a breakdown of how these plans will be managed. For example, the real estate agent might plan to hold one open house every two weeks, and then evaluate the frequency of these events after six weeks.
Comparative Plan
Your agent will pull data from other recent home sales in your neighborhood to offer you some comparisons. This plan can show you how long, on average, homes in your area take to sell. This information can be valuable if you're anxious to sell quickly. For example, if the average home in your neighborhood takes nine weeks to sell, you should know to not get frustrated at the three-week mark, for example. This comparative plan will also show you the percentage of the asking price that other sellers have received, as well as other relevant data that you'll be able to consider while your home is for sale.
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