Real estate agents are familiar with your local market and will provide you with a comparative market analysis for your home as part of their services. Not all states require sellers to bring a real estate attorney to the closing, but it might be worth it to have a legal professional on your side, especially if you’re selling your home solo. You can hire one to help fill out paperwork, review contracts and documents, identify potential issues and ensure the sale goes as smoothly as possible.
It’s also a lot of work to look for a new home while selling another. Of course, some people have the finances to purchase a new home before selling their current one, but that’s not always the case. For our services, we charge a service fee similar to the commission a real estate agent collects in a traditional sale. In the digital age, sellers no longer need to list their home with a real estate agent—you have options. But, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons to determine the best fit for your circumstances. Consider adding a video tour or 360-degree view to further enhance your listing.
If you live in an area with a hot market, you can typically expect your home to sell faster than in markets where buyer demand is low. Look, everybody loves saving money, and selling solo can seem like a great way to do just that. But is For Sale by Owner really all it’s cracked up to be? First of all, if you really want to sell your home, you need to get it in front of buyers—and lots of them. With an agent or for sale by owner process, sellers have a lot more unknowns. In this scenario, you may want to look for a new home before yours is sold, which can be tricky since you may not know your exact budget or move-out date.
Unless your state requires it, this is completely optional. Some real estate agents build professional photography and virtual online tours into their suite of services. If they don’t, though, you might want to seek a photographer out on your own. The fee for professional photography will vary based on the size of your home, its location and how long it takes to shoot it. Most home sellers dream of a stress-free sale where they simply list their house, quickly find a qualified buyer, collect the cash and hand over the keys. The reality is that selling a home includes many moving parts — some which you can control and some that are out of your hands.
Get free, objective, performance-based recommendations for top real estate agents in your area. Check with your real estate agent beforehand to make sure you have everything you’ll need, as each state and situation is different. Your real estate agent will have other documentation necessary to complete the sale. But before you pop the bubbly, there’s a giant to-do list and stack of paperwork standing between you and the finish line. Every state is different and requires its own special forms and documentation, so check with your real estate agent about what paperwork you’ll need to have ready to close your home sale.
