Sell My House

Complimentary home evaluation & broker price opinion

Kenneth Rose will visit your home and conduct a thorough visual inspection. You will be provided with the most current sales activities and competition in your neighborhood. Kenneth Rose will personally review all data and results from the visual inspection and render an itemized list of recommended adjustments, modifications and or improvements necessary to obtain fair market value in a timely fashion. Based on the scope of work agreed, a project proposal and timeline will be submitted at no charge. Homes that are intended to be “Fixer Upper’s” can simply be sold “As-Is”  @copyright 2016

Pricing Your Home

In some cases, establishing the exact fair market value for a property can be challenging. For example, your property is in a neighborhood where there have been limited sales in the past six months; or you have a custom home or a home that has been improved far beyond that of the average home in the subdivision. It can be beneficial to all parties at times to get an appraisal from a licensed home appraiser before putting the property on the market. The number of days on the market are a huge factor in the minds of savvy home buyers and their experienced realtors. Most home purchases involve financing and in order for a buyer to obtain underwriter approval, the appraised value must not be less than the contract/purchase price. If your home can’t appraise, you’ve now lost 80 to 90% of the potential buyers for your property. The days on the market and history of the listing stay on record forever even if you take your house off the market for 90 days to reset the days on the market.

Price right or be prepared to SIT TIGHT. The real estate market peaks every 10 years or more.

Preparing to Sell Your Home

Selling your home can be a difficult or even emotional decision, and often can be quite challenging. But with the right preparation, pricing and the help of professionals, you can turn your home into marketable real estate.

Seller Checklist

1. Decide whether you want to sell your own home (for sale by owner) or use the resources of a real estate professional. Learn more about the advantages of working with a REALTOR®.
2. Get your home ready to sell. Spend time on preparing your home before it is listed. You will want it to outshine its competition and look as attractive as possible.
3. Educate yourself about sales prices of homes in your neighborhood and your community. A realistic understanding of how to price your home is a critical element in a successful sale. Don’t depend on your neighbor’s stories about sales prices of homes—get the facts.
4. Learn what disclosures you will need to prepare as the seller.
5. Remember that you may have to offer closing cost assistance to make the sale of the home possible.
6. Educate yourself about different types of loans and how you can help a ready, willing and able buyer purchase your home.

Preparing Your Home To Sell

1. Start with the outside – curb appeal gets buyers into your home. Scrape, prep, paint or power wash house, deck and patio. Clean out flower beds and rake up any refuse or leaves and add new mulch and new fresh flowers. Replace outside lights. Clean and repair gutters and downspouts. Repair or replace rusted or pitted railings. Sweep (or shovel!) walkways. Clean or paint the front door.
2. From the outside, step into the front foyer and look around. Is the entryway attractive, or is it cluttered?
3. Wash all windows inside and out. Open draperies and curtains during the day or turn on lights at night to promote the effect of bright cheery interiors.
4. Remove personal items, family pictures, and all excess decorations, including extra furniture. Start packing—especially personal collections. Make the space look as large and inviting as possible.
5. Set a neutral tone to the house—with paint and colors. You want your home to appeal to as wide a range of buyers as possible.
6. Be sure all carpet and floors are clean. Replace, clean, or repair as necessary.
7. Dust your furniture and hot water heater and all other appliances. A shiny appliance shows an attention to maintenance and care.
8. Replace the filters in your heating and cooling systems.
9. Fix everything that is broken, including loose doorknobs, wobbly hinges, stuck windows, cracked glass or mirrors.
10. Paint and polish. A small investment in paint, stain or polyurethane will restore faded walls and worn woodwork and make your home look and smell fresh
11. Call the plumber if necessary. Make sure there are no leaking faucets, clogged or slow drains, or low water pressure.
12. Re-caulk all tubs. Nothing turns a buyer off faster than mold in the bathtub caulk!
13. Keep stairways and corridors clean and free of clutter so that they are attractive and safe.
14. Consider the big picture—be sure the attic is presentable, the garage is neat and preferably empty, the basement is tidy, closets are clean, neat and well organized.
15. Look at the house through the eyes of a buyer. Highlight strengths, focus on features and bring out the best in your house.

Pricing Your Home To Sell

Realistic pricing is a major factor in the marketability of your home and key to a quick sale. The most common mistake sellers make is setting the price too high. An overpriced house not only won’t sell, it may not even attract offers, so you won’t have the opportunity even to make a counter offer.

There are several steps you can take to understand the market value of your home.

1. Research homes that have sold in your neighborhood in the last six months. Include sales that are within one half mile of your home, and look for homes of similar size.
2. From that list, compare homes that are of a similar age and square footage.
3. Pay attention to any physical barriers that may divide your neighborhood. Major streets or transit lines may affect house prices on either side.
4. Other factors that may affect the price of your home include its location. Is your neighborhood a desirable area? Is your home close to shopping, schools and recreation facilities?
5. Pay attention to school district lines. Two similar houses in different school districts may get very different prices.
6. If you intend to list your home with a real estate professional, interview at least three who specialize in your neighborhood. Ask each one to give you a comparative market analysis and their opinion about the appropriate price range.

Steps to Home Selling

1. Meet With a Realtor

There is no commitment on your part for the initial meeting. It will be educational and let you know next steps and help you decide whom you feel comfortable representing you in the transaction.

2. Establish a Price

Your REALTOR® will provide a market analysis which evaluates comparable homes in your area to COMPARABLE determine the best
asking price.

3. Prepare Your Home

View your home through the eyes of a prospective buyer and ask yourself what you’d expect. Your REALTOR® will provide some useful ideas for decluttering, staging, or improvements. The next step is photographing the home, so you want to make it as attractive as possible.

4. List it For Sale

Once the home is ready for sale, your REALTOR® will begin advertising the property and make it available in the multiple list service so all real estate professionals can view and share with their buyers.

5. Offer and Contract

Your REALTOR® will guide you through the buyers’ offers and negotiation process. Once an offer has been accepted and a signed contract is in place, the buyer will begin the process of getting an appraisal and property inspections.

6. Closing

This is the transfer of funds and ownership. You will sign several documents and arrange to receive the sale proceeds. Typically, you will have emptied the house of your belongings for the new buyer. Be sure to have keys to all doors (and sheds or garages) along with alarm codes or other necessary information for the new owners.

Listing Paperwork

Disclose, disclose, disclose. Kenneth Rose with help from staff will deliver a pre-listing package including the required documents and disclosures. Sellers must report all known material defects and knowledge or reports pertaining to the presence of lead-based paint (typically present in homes built before the year of 1978). Sellers are also now required to provide buyers radon test results prior to a purchase contract becoming firm. This new law, which took effect in 2024, gives buyers a 5-day right to cancel or negotiate remediation.

Buyer’s beware, but seller’s must sell fair.

Call Kenneth Rose now at 301-983-3500