Sell Your Home Quickly Or For The Most Money
Data published by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that more than six million homes were sold in the US in 2015 alone. The last time home sales reached such a figure was in 2006 just before the subprime mortgage crisis debacle. Overall, the current real estate market is favorable to sellers. However, a property seller must strike the right balance between finding a suitable buyer fast and getting as much money as possible. Below is a detailed discussion on whether you should sell your home quickly or for the most money.
Selling Fast
Selling a home fast generally depends on factors such as the location, asking price, prevailing economic climate, interest rates, comparable inventory within the same price range, and target audience. For instance, a study published by Zillow in 2015 found that homes listed between May 1 and May 15 are sold 18.5 days faster than homes listed outside this time frame. If you do not list within this time frame, there’s no worry, but you should expect the average “time on market” to be longer ranging from 36 to 48 days, the NAR reports. In addition, the timeline for selling a luxury house is much longer because the pool of potential buyers is much smaller and they tend to look for properties that suit their needs as well as meet their feature specifications. As such, some luxury homes remain on the market for periods ranging from months to years. Nevertheless, another Zillow review found that properties with features that resonate with the expectations of buyers in that market sell up to two months faster than expected.
Maximizing Value
Waiting for months to sell your home for top dollar has its own pros and cons. Firstly, buyers tend to avoid properties that remain on the market for long due to worries that they may have defects or undesirable features that have put off maintaining or updating. Moreover, home hunters may avoid your home if they believe that the asking price is too high. This means you would have to lower the asking price to attract potential buyers. In fact, this problem is common in the high-end real estate segment leading to asking price markdowns of thousands of dollars in some cases. To avoid being stuck with unsold houses, sellers invest in improvement projects that appeal to buyers such as kitchen upgrades, outdoor landscaping, bathroom upgrades, and house staging. This is in addition to highlighting low crime rates and walk-ability in reference to the proximity to schools, shopping centers, hospitals, and entertainment spots. An analysis of online listing descriptions done by Zillow found that certain features could improve the purchase price of your home by up to 13 above the asking price. Some of the popular features among property buyers today include Shaker cabinets, subway tiles, and open floor plans.
Conclusion
While you can sell your home quickly at any time of the year, focusing on a fast divestiture does not guarantee that you will get top dollar for your home. On the other hand, waiting longer to sell a house may be beneficial provided you are willing to invest in home improvement projects that appeal to potential buyers.