Selling your house can be nerve-wracking. Any real estate sales transaction carries with it substantial investigatory and bureaucratic requirements, and if the property being sold is your primary residence, you can add peer pressure and social judgment to the list of stressors you will likely experience during the sales process. Maybe your neighbor is interested in your home for his kid, but he expects you to offer it to him for $20K less than market value. Or maybe you've invested heavily in fixing up what was once the least valuable home in your neighborhood and can't wait to see the looks on your neighbors' faces when they see how it looks now. Whatever the situation, showing your home can be one of the most stressful and emotionally fraught parts of the home selling experience. Here are a few tips on what to expect and how to make the most of your showings.
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Expect limited feedback. This is one of the aspects of selling a home that are most stressful for sellers: most buyers won't give in-depth feedback unless they are hoping to negotiate on price. This can particularly difficult for those who want to sell their home quickly and wish they knew why those viewing the home haven't been making offers. You can always ask your Realtor to provide you with any feedback they receive, but chances are strong that they are already doing that whenever they get direct feedback.
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Don't hang around. This plays off of number one. When people sell their home, it's natural to want to see and hear the reactions of interested parties and prospective buyers. However, nothing is a bigger turn-off to the average buyer than being followed or questioned aggressively by the current owner of a home. After all, they want to imagine themselves in the space, not you and your family in it. It's best for everyone concerned if you leave before the buyers arrive and provide plenty of buffer time at the end of the appointment window so that you don't cross paths at the end of the viewing either.
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Prepare staging for last minute showings. Evening and weekend showings are common, and many buyers will only give a day or less notice that they want to view a property. You won't have a day or more to clean and stage your home, so try to keep the various rooms as close to their staged appearance as possible. With any luck, they showing process will only last a week or two, and it won't be an ongoing issue.
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Expect for your home to be treated with respect. Although your seller's agent has likely had you execute a hold harmless agreement for any possible damages and thefts that occur during home showings, most buyers and their agents will treat your home with respect. If you return home to find something missing, broken, or a mess, you should let your agent know right away so that they can address the issue with the buyer's agent who showed the property.
Selling your home doesn't have to be a drawn-out, stressful experience. Working with dedicated Realtors, like the staff at Pyxis Realty, can do a lot to reduce the potential stressors and pitfalls of the homeselling process. If you're ready to list your home for sale, don't hesitate! Contact the team at Pyxis Realty today!