If you're reading this article I'm guessing that you are asking, "How do I sell my house FAST." If that's the case, you are in the right place. We've purchased and sold hundreds of homes and regularly "crush" the market in speed to sale. Here's how we do it and how you can too:
1. Make A Decision
This may not be the exciting stuff but this is the foundation of a successful home sale. You need to decide:
What type of sale do I want this to be?
Am I willing to make repairs?
Do I want lots of showings?
Can I store my plethora of amazing knick-knacks elsewhere to declutter my house?
If you want both top dollar and a quick sale, your house needs to be absolutely perfectamundo.
You also need to ask yourself, "Do I actually need to sell my house fast?" If so, how fast is fast (5 days, 30, 90)? The term fast varies from market to market. Speed will play a major contributor into when to sell. There's a lot to weigh here. Check out the pros and cons of each way to sell .
At this point, you may be leaning one direction or the other. Step 2 will help you know for sure which path is best.
2. Research Your Path
Before setting on your path to sell fast, you should take some time and get some education. There are two major paths that you can take when selling fast. 1. Sell the traditional route (think agent, showings, repairs) and 2. The investor route (think "cash", easy, maybe discounted).
Traditional:
If you decided to go the more traditional route, you will want to know what's selling in your marketplace. Check out homes on realtor.com or zillow.com that are under contract or recently sold. You can see how many days each home sat before the sale. What do fast selling homes have in common? What color schemes did they use? What upgrades and "wow" factors make the homes pop.
Of course, you don't have to completely renovate your home but to sell fast and for top dollar expect to do some work. When we want to sell fast but can't do it all, we focus on the high impact items. These will vary from house to house but here are some general principles:
Start your plan with the ugliest things first. (broken windows, stained flooring, scary bathrooms)
Go room to room and then identify the "simple" fixes. We typically change out all of the electric outlets and switches. It's cheap and makes a big impact.
Find contractors and create a budget. When selecting contractors, cheapest typically isn't the best, but neither is the most expensive. You need to find someone who loves their work and isn't trying to get rich from just your one project.
If you are planning to list with an agent, a good one should be able to help you with these questions.
We Buy Houses:
If you want to go the "We Buy Houses" route, here are a few steps to help you get top dollar and not get burned. Selling to these buyers can be easier, but does typically require some type of discount from what you might make the more traditional route.
Find reputable companies. Most of these are easily found online with a simple search. The ones that appear in the "organic" search results are typically more established. I recommend staying away from bandit signs. Bandit signs are those "we buy houses signs" you see plastered all over the roadways.
Talk to them about your home and situation. Sometimes, good companies can pay more than you think and even come up with very creative solutions that you didn't even think of (maybe a house swap?).
Meet with the buyer and get a written offer along with proof of funds.
3. Prepare The Home
Get your place to shimmer and shine (or not)!
Traditional:
Now that you have your plan in place, a budget and your contractors lined up it's time to get to work. Pack away excess stuff, make the high-impact repairs, clean, touch-ups, etc. You want your home to glisten. Depending on your home's condition, this could take a few days to a number of weeks. An exceptional agent will help you through a lot of this.
We Buy Houses:
Depending on the buyer, you may not have to do anything here. Investor buyers can typically see past the stuff and minor fixes. They will typically make you an offer for the home 100% "as-is".
For us, this offer means that we will even deal with the stuff that you don't want anymore. Through this, we have donated hundreds of truckloads of good stuff to great non-profits.
4. Market The Property
Great pics, amazing staging and baked cookies.
Traditional:
Once your home is listed, priced right and on full display, the buyers will come. Hopefully, it will be lots. If you are in a HOT market, an open house makes great sense. I typically price homes a bit below market to get some quick showings and multiple offers. I then say, in the comments, that the sellers are unable to review offers until (some date about a 5-7 days out).
This gives opportunity for many people to see the home but removes the pressure from you to accept the first thing that comes along. Depending on the job you've done with repairs, staging, photography, etc. you may have offers that even exceed asking price! Do be ready though, extensive showings can be inconvenient, coming in from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm 7 days a week.
We Buy Houses:
Just sit back. Nothing for you to do here.
5. Receive, Review and Select
I know, I bundled three steps into one but it's kinda all the same thing - deal with offers.
Traditional:
Hopefully, you've completed steps 1-4 with laser-like precision. You've marketed like a boss and have not one but multiple offers in hand. Before accepting the highest, weigh the pros and cons of each. Is one a good bit higher but contingent on the sale of their home (which they've probably not read this article and therefore don't know how to sell fast :) We like to weigh out price, time and quality of offer before selecting one.
We Buy Houses:
Pick a closing date, start the moving process and collect your check.
If you are looking to sell your house fast, definitely check out our website: www.FastHomeSales.com. We buy properties across the continental US and we do our best to provide a fair, friendly and fast experience.
