Let’s begin by discussing exactly what a contingency contract is.  A  contingency contract is what you use to buy a new home when you need the equity from your current house to make the purchase. It is exactly the same as a standard contract except for the fact that it includes an addendum for the sale of another property by the buyer. For that reason, we will focus on the content of the addendum for this article. It is important to note, however, that ALL parts of the contract can affect the seller’s willingness to accept an offer.

The first question many people have is , “When can I submit a contingency offer?” The answer: Whenever you want. Will a knowledgeable seller take a contingency offer before your current house is under contract to sale? Probably not. For that reason, it is important that your first priority is getting your current house under contract. In this case, it is generally a good idea to leave yourself a fair amount of time before closing so that you have time to negotiate a contract on your next purchase. It may also be wise to include a lease back to give yourself a couple of days to move.

Ok. your current house is under contract. Now what?! The best thing you can do is get a Realtor to help explain to you how a contingency contract works. There are too many scenarios to cover in this article. Suffice it to say that the wording in the addendum protects the buyer if the contract on their current house falls through.

On the other hand, it also protects the seller by allowing them to continue showing the property. IF another offer is made on the house, though, the original buyer has “dibs.” That is to say that they have an opportunity to put down more earnest money (the amount can be negotiated) to give up their contingency and continue forward with a standard contract. If the buyer chooses to do this, the seller must stay with their offer even if the second offer was much higher.

 This may sound bad for the buyer, but generally by this point in time you have a pretty good idea if the sale of your previous house will go through. At this point, if you’ve played your cards right, The sale of your previous house closes, the purchase of your new home closes, the new house is yours, and everyone is happy.

It is important to note that seemingly minute details in a contingency contract can be responsible for the success or failure of the whole deal. For this reason, I STRONGLY advise you to contact a Realtor if you find yourself in this situation. They have the experience and the knowledge to help you through this process and to make sure that you are protected.

The First, and most important step, is to contact a Realtor. Simply doing this can save you the trouble of having to worry about the following four steps. If you insist on continuing alone, you must then CLEAN your house, PRICE your house, and STAGE your house properly to ensure it sells in the optimal amount of time. The final step in the process is often the most difficult. This is not because sellers are not motivated, but simply that they don’t always have the correct tools to get the job done properly. This step is ADVERTISING.

Advertising a house for sale is largely a numbers game. By that, I mean that the more people who see your property, the better. In order to advertise effectively, you must look at how consumers find houses for sale. A large percentage of home buyers contact Realtors to help them find a home. Realtors use a system called MLS, or Multiple Listing Service, to market their listings to other Realtors and potential buyers. This is yet another reason why it is important to speak with a Realtor before selling your house.

 Another great way to make your home available to the masses is the  internet. This is a fantastic way to reach a large audience, but it can be difficult entering your information in many websites to produce the results you want. If you are listing your house with a Realtor, it is important to ask them how they plan to market your property online. Many Realtors use numerous websites, and even social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) to advertise their listings.

The other mainstream way to advertise a property is with signs and fliers. These can be very effective if designed properly. In order to be effective, you need to have a professional looking flier with pictures and important information about the house. Finally, you need to have a way for the potential buyers to contact you. It does you no good to have a great flier if the buyers can’t get ahold of you to buy the house.

Selling a house can be unnerving, but if you contact a Realtor, clean, price your house well, stage it to sell, and advertise properly; you are sure to find success.

Due to the recent outpouring of information on television about staging, many people are under the impression that staging is a difficult process that must be done by a professional. This is not the case. All you need are a few simple guidelines to follow.

First, remember that you are selling the space in your house. The larger the space looks, the more value you add. That does not mean you should remove everything. Houses that appear lived in are much easier to sell than empty houses. It simply means that you should leave only enough furniture to give the future owner an idea about what will fit in each room. For instance, in a bedroom you might leave a full size bed and a night stand.

Next, you must remember that you are selling a house, not YOUR home. That means that personal items need to be removed. Things like religious symbols and family pictures can sometimes make potential buyers feel like they are intruding in YOUR home, not looking at THEIR future home.

Now for the final touches. At this point, you should be left with a sparsely furnished house with relatively bare walls. All you need to do now is patch and paint the walls (Neutral colors are best) and set out a few decorative items and/or artwork. These items can be purchased at hobby stores at a minimal expense. With these guidelines, staging your house and staying on top of College Station home sales is easy!

Pricing is affected by many factors. Just a few of them are how much houses in the area have sold for in the past, how much money you NEED to get, how much money you WANT to get, and how fast you need to sell your house. It is important to remember that pricing will be different for each house as well as each seller.

Many people think that the average sales price for their neighborhood is a good place to start. This is often a good idea, but make sure to base your price on average sales price per square foot, not average total sales price. From there, you can add to the price for improvements, decrease price if you are in a hurry to sell, make allowances for repairs, ……..the list goes on seemingly forever. 

The bottom line is that there is no simple formula to follow. This is why it is imperative that you consult with a Realtor to ensure that your house sells quickly at a good price. Your Realtor will guide you through the process based on your personal needs and wishes. Pricing is one of the reasons that a large majority of people trying to sell their own house end up contacting a Realtor. Save yourself a lot of head ache and let a Realtor guide you through the difficult parts of College Station home sales.

    First of all, the house should be cleaned thoroughly from top to bottom at least once when the house is listed. Does this mean that your house must be kept in immaculate condition at all times? Absolutely not. It should, however, be kept tidy enough that you can have it looking fantastic in less than an hour. This is because you could be called at any time by a Realtor who wants to show your property to a potential buyer, and putting them off may mean that they find another house before even having a chance to look at yours. The results are equally as detrimental if you allow them to show an unkept house. A dirty house can reduce offer values, and even prevent offers altogether. Nobody wants to invest in a house that has been poorly maintained. It is equally important to have your house clean for the listing pictures. These pictures are your first impression for potential buyers, and you want it to be a good one.

    The question often follows: “What are the most important areas to clean?” Typical problem areas are bathrooms and kitchens. Many people overlook sinks, stoves, oven, bath tubs, toilets, and refrigerators. These should all be cleaned meticulously at least once when the home is listed. Failure to do this can leave the buyer with the feeling that the house is poorly maintained. Nobody wants to buy a house with a tub full of soap scum!

    Cleaning costs nothing and increases the marketability of your house greatly. If you want to stay on top of College Station home sales, cleaning your house is a must!

The questions will likely start with a qualifying nature to determine your timeline in selling. Common questions Realtors ask are:

• When are You Thinking of Placing Your Home on the Market?
• Have You Interviewed Other Agents?
• How Fast do You Need to be Out of Your Current Property?
• Do You Know what Price You Want for Your Home?
• What Are Your Goals?

You want to be honest about what you are looking for and where you are in the selling process. If you are looking to stay in the area, see if the realtor has any suggestions of homes currently on the market or responds with news of interest from the area you are wanting to live in. This indicates the realtor is knowledgeable about the market and what is going on in the area. You also want to be ready with a few basic questions, yourself:

• How do You Plan to Market My Home?
• How Will We Communicate and How Frequently?
• How do You Come Up with a Market Price?
• May I see a List of Your Awards and References?

A good Realtor will meet you at the door with a business card and notebook in hand. When they enter your home, no matter what the flooring or condition, they will remove their shoes to show respect for your property. You don’t want a Realtor who is going to give you an instant evaluation of what your home is worth.

It is impossible to correctly evaluate the value a property without looking at all its details and special characteristics first. Give special bonus points to agents who write down notes as they go from room to room and point out special selling features of your home as they are viewing it.

You also want a Realtor who has already done their homework before coming to your home. This means they will have brought with them a CMA or Comparative Market Analysis. A Realtor who has a CMA to view with you has already scoped out your competition (other homes).

This is extremely important because this type of agent: is better prepared to answer objections, more likely to arrive at the correct asking price for your home, has the data that shows what has to be done to get the home sold, and is ready to help you meet your desired goals. You should also ask the agent for a written copy of their marketing plan. A professional agent will also have marketing examples at the listing appointment for you to review as well.

At the end of your visit, a good Realtor will ask for your business and will ask you to sign a listing agreement. The length of the agreement should reflect the time it takes to sell a home in your area. A listing that lasts between 3 and 6 months is not unusual. Remember, any reputable agent will allow you out of your contractual listing agreement with them, at any time and at no cost to you, if you are truly unhappy with his/her service or if your plans should change.

Feel free to call or email me with any questions you may have. Happy Selling!

www.ahouse-soldname.com

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