How to Maximize Your Profits When Selling a House in Gig Harbor
How to Maximize Your Profits When Selling a House in Gig Harbor by Top Real Estate Agent in Gig Harbor, Washington
Hey, Paige here, top Gig Harbor Real Estate agent, popping in to give you the lowdown on getting all you deserve when you sell your home.
You’ve probably heard it’s a great time to sell your home. If you haven’t, it’s a freaking amazing time to sell. Now you know.
It’s a supply-and-demand issue, like we learned about in high school. Too many buyers, too few homes, making the prices INSANE IN THE BRAIN.
We have incredibly low inventory plus incredibly low interest rates causing housing prices to SOAR in Gig Harbor, WA, and all across the US, actually.
You might be thinking, “I could just sell my house myself, or I could hire my cousin who just got her license and get a deal and save some money…” But it’s not that simple (whomp whomp).
Here are some professional tips to make sure you don’t leave any money on the table and you don’t open yourself up to major liability.
Here’s a quick story before we get to the good stuff.
I represented a buyer on a For Sale By Owner recently and got a $22,000 reduction in contract price 5 days before closing. You read that right…SO MUCH MONEY off the price that the seller was counting on.
Here’s how it went. The seller listed their home, received 3 offers, and my buyer’s offer was THE BEST. What the seller did not do is negotiate a low appraisal contingency. When the appraisal came back it is was lower than our contract price, so I was able to re-negotiate with the seller and get a lower price for my buyers. Had the seller had their own agent they could have avoided this hiccup in the transaction process and pre-negotiated how to handle this situation.
MLS contracts are binding contracts and are complicated if you aren’t reading them everyday, plus they literally just changed the language on over 20 forms so you want a FULL-TIME agent on your team that knows the ins and outs of the contract language to protect your price.
If the seller had an agent we would not have been able to reduce the price of that contract, but they just simply didn’t know the terms they were working with.
Selling your home is the easy part…getting the contract to close is much more difficult than most people realize.
The good stuff
Hire smart. Get a local, full-time agent on your team. You want someone who knows the local market statistics so you can price your home in the sweet spot and get great terms AND a great price. The local relationships that your agent has are also paramount—they will help you get the contractors you need to prep your home for market, as a well prepared home will get you more money due to the incredibly low inventory.
Here are 5 Tips to help you net the most money when you are selling a home in Gig Harbor.
You want an agent who covers the cost of staging, professional photography, and 3D online tours. In the new COVID era your home MUST shine online to attract the most buyers. You want an agent who has the funds to cover these expenses and won’t cut corners just because “it will sell anyway.”
Hiring a full-time agent will ensure that you are protected. The NWMLS forms have just undergone major changes to the contract language. If you have a dedicated agent they will have invested the time into their education to learn the new forms and how they benefit the seller or buyer they are representing so you can protect your purchase and sale contract.
Does your agent have enough time for you? The market is insanely fast and you want to be a priority. While it is amazing to be a seller, real estate agents are working harder than ever for their clients. Make sure your agent isn’t overloaded with too many buyers so they are available to tend to prepping your home for market and tracking your transaction from listing to closing. Will your agent be by your side the whole way through or will you be handed off to a team member?
If you prepare your home AND market it well you are likely to get multiple offers. The average Gig Harbor home is getting 4 offers when they sell. You want an agent who can help you negotiate a busy multiple-offer situation to get you the most money, the best terms, and protect you from vulnerabilities related to Fair Housing violations and disclosure lawsuits. Money is King but TERMS are Queen and she runs the show. The nuances in the contract terms are incredibly important so you can protect the high price you are going to attract (since your house is going to be so well prepared.)
Your agent must be a digital agent. They should be adept at marketing online, as 96% of buyers are shopping online and utilizing multiple platforms to find homes to fit their needs. Your agent must be able to manage communication in a digital world—showings are most often booked online through apps, and communication between agents is high tech and quick paced.
Want to learn more about selling your home in Gig Harbor? Call me, Paige Schulte, top Gig Harbor Real Estate agent. I am here to answer all of your questions (and I won’t stalk you): (253) 313-4093.
If you want to get started on getting your home ready to sell, download my FREE 30 Guide to Prepping your home for market.
As always, thank you for stopping by!
Hugs and Happy Homes,
Paige
Have more questions about how to win as a buyer or get the smoothest transaction ever during your home sale? Contact me today to chat.
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