Home sellers are having quite the time, especially in certain parts of the country. Not happy with where you’re living? Select a new place, move out and then put your home up for sale. More than likely, it will be sold in less than a week for what you were asking for, as long as it was reasonable. That’s the market you are working in right now. It’s kind of like those fishing video games, you know you are going to get a bite and fast, otherwise why would you play the game?
While it is a sellers’ market, that doesn’t mean the game is that easy. There are still mistakes that can cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Selling in this market does come with some tricks and conditions. Most buyers are educated on the process because of resources available to them that buyers haven’t had in the past. Their realtors also know what banks are looking for in qualified buyers and they can focus the right buyers on specific properties. These things make it more difficult for sellers to get their ideal price unless they are equipped with their own realtor.

Mistakes Sellers Make

There are mistakes that realtors can help you avoid. Knowing these mistakes is important, not only to avoid them, but to understand how delicate this process is, even if the current market is to your advantage. Remember, when in doubt, check with your realtor. Their job is to literally get you the best possible deal and handle all the stress of actually selling the property. Why would you want to interfere with that? If you want the best deal possible, avoid these mistakes:

  • Pricing too high or low: While the market is moving at a crazy speed, there is still some reality in it. Pricing it too high will have qualified buyers leaving and force you to either drop the price significantly or deal with buyers who are trying to get special consideration or deals through. That’s not something you want to deal. Setting a price that’s considerably lower than it should be will simply cost you thousands of dollars.
  • Losing patience: While the process may move fast, it does require a lot of work and coordination. This is where the frustration can set it and you may lose a deal or considerable amounts of money because you lost your patience. A realtor will handle all of these requirements and take care of the legwork as well.
  • Basic fixes: Fixing that leaking faucet is a good idea, putting in a new pool may not be. While the traditional thought of selling a home is to do the upgrades while you are an owner so that you can upsell your property down the road, that’s actually changed. Because of inflation, the cost to make major upgrades may not be beneficial. It could not only be more expensive than the money you would recoup but it could delay you being able to sell for months because the work needs to be completed.
  • DIY selling: Realtors despise DIY selling for many reasons and not the ones you think of. DIY selling of homes creates so much frustration and issues between both sides because the seller often makes mistakes and is unsure what to do. While it’s understandable that you would want to maximize your profits, the fact is that it’s not worth the potential money you could lose if you make a mistake.

As you research the market you may be interested in selling because you can make a huge profit. If that’s the case, you should also consider if it’s the best thing to do for you. It gives you a variety of options and this is an opportunity that comes only a few times in a lifetime. These decisions will impact your financial future and you want to proceed with caution. Working with a realtor helps to minimize potential mistakes and allows you to maximize your profits on the deal.