If you want to sell a home quickly, you need to figure out what potential buyers are likely to want and then show how your home can deliver it. If you’re using a full-service estate agent, they’ll probably help a lot with this. It can, however, still be helpful to know the right approach. With that in mind, here is a quick guide on how to sell a home quickly.
Do your research on your local market
You need to find out what the current generation of buyers in your area is likely to want. This could be a mixture of national trends and localised trends. The property press will generally cover national trends. They may also cover broader local markets such as major cities. For local trends, keep your eye on your local news.
Work to create a great home listing
In modern home sales, it can be best to think of home listings as a succession of teaser, trailer and sales pitch. Your teaser is the thumbnail on the search results in property portals. Your trailer is the main listing on the sales portal.
Pre-COVID19 the main sales pitch generally came in the form of a physical viewing. The lockdown, however, encouraged sellers (and their agents) to create an intermediary step. Essentially, this means providing even more information digitally. With lockdown easing, it remains to be seen if this will continue. There is, however, a lot to be said for it.
In simple terms, the more you can pre-qualify buyers, the fewer real-world viewings you are likely to need to organise before you find a buyer. This can make life a lot easier for everyone, including you. You don’t need any technical skills to create a basic website and/or YouTube channel. You don’t need to spend any money either, a free website package will be fine.
How to create a great home listing
A great home listing basically works as a sales funnel. As such, it provides exactly the right type of information at each step. It also goes into the right level of detail.
Your thumbnail
Arguably, the most important feature by far is the price. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, buyers can search;/filter on price/price range. You, therefore, want to make sure that your home will be picked up in the right searches. Secondly, there is a reason for the expression “priced to sell”. Homes are major purchases and, quite bluntly, price does matter a lot.
The next most important feature is the thumbnail picture. This should generally be an exterior view of your home (even if you live in a block of flats). It needs to present your home as its “best self”. In other words, it needs to be realistic but as attractive as possible.
Your portal listing
The photos on your portal listing are your chance to highlight your home’s main selling points. They are hugely important so it can be helpful to have a professional take them. As a minimum, use a proper camera and read up on how to photograph real estate to sell.
Put your home into “show” condition before the photos are taken. Remember that space and storage tend to be major concerns for modern buyers so make sure that you declutter thoroughly. Also remove anything remotely controversial (think sports, religion and politics). Then consider whether to rearrange your belongings to make your home look more appealing.
Use the text space to give a rundown of relevant practical details. If you wish, offer a link to a YouTube video and/or a website with more information about your home.
Additional information
If you opt to show more information then use the opportunity to sell the location and lifestyle as well as the property itself. You may want to link to other sources but try to keep the key information on your own page so viewers have as much as possible in one place.
Think carefully before securing other debts against your home. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage