When selling your home in Arizona it is important to know the steps involved. The first step is preparation. If this is done right, you can guarantee yourself a successful and worry-free sale.
The first part of preparation is research. Be an informed seller. Visit your local library or search the Internet. Realty Executives provides a resource page to make your preparation easier. Just remember, the more you know, the bigger advantage you will have when it comes to selling your home. Decide whether you want to be represented by a licensed real estate agent. (click here to view the advantages and disadvantages of having an agent). Have a market analysis done on your home. Realty Executives provides this as a free service. Fair market pricing can be found by comparing recent sale prices in your neighborhood of properties that have similar size and features. Showcase your home by clearing each room of unnecessary clutter and personal items. This makes your home appear larger and lets buyers picture themselves living in the home. (Click here to see how to stage your home.) This is the most important part of preparing your home for sale on the Arizona market.
Pre-listing home inspections can be a good choice if you are unsure or just do not know about problems that might be found during the inspection period of the contract. The potential buyers can request these to be repaired before the close of the sale. This could be avoided by stating the problem is “as is” in the contract.
Know current financing options to check out the stability of your buyers and their offers. Develop a marketing strategy to sell your home on the Arizona market or hire a real estate agent to market your home for you. Get familiar with current Arizona real estate contracts to understand the legal issues of sales contracts as they come in. If you are not working with an agent, understand what is involved in closing costs so there are no surprises in your final payout.
The second step in selling your home in Arizona is putting your home on the market. Marketing is very important in selling a home. It is true that in some markets, some homes can sell simply by putting a sign in the yard, but this is not usually the case. Hire an agent or developing a strategy to sell your home as an un-represented seller. You can do this by advertising in local papers and real estate publications or on the Internet. Be prepared for showings and know the best times for potential buyers to view your home. If you are working with an agent, you have the option of installing a lock box for maximum availability and your own security. You may want to consider a “by appointment only” sign on your for sale sign.
How you price your home and stage your home will determine the time it takes to receive an offer. The factors you are looking at are:
• Price (sales price)
• Escrow deposit (non-refundable after inspection)
• Finance (how stable the offer is)
• Contingencies or additions to the contract
Once you receive a contract that you feel meets all of your criteria, you can accept it or counter-offer with changed or additional terms.
The final step, after the contract is accepted, starts off with choosing an escrow company where the buyer will deposit the earnest money. The buyer usually chooses this, but the seller can choose if they disclose this before the contract acceptance. From the date of acceptance, the buyers have 10 days to inspect the property and decline the offer without losing their earnest money. During this period, if the buyer wishes to continue, they will send you a “seller's response” with or without additions or changes to the contract.
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