Are you ready for a change of scenery? Have you been wanting to sell your home? The time to prepare for selling your home is now! Spring is around the corner and these next few months are vital for prepping your home to be put on the market.
Have you never sold a home before? This whole process may feel daunting and overwhelming. Understandably there are a lot of moving pieces and stages of selling a property. The good news is that you don’t have to go about this alone! Having a trustworthy realtor and experienced real estate agent on your side are the first steps on the road to success!
Fortunately, spring is known to be the optimal time to put a home on the market. The combination of fresh plants and a new year create a fresh, hopeful feeling for many prospective buyers. “Home sales are projected to rise by 7% in 2021 as the market continues to rebound from the turbulence of 2020. More millennials are entering the home buying market for the first time, which will lead to increased demand.” Clever
23 Legal is here to set you up with a successful home selling experience!
Check out our guide for how to prepare your home before putting a “for sale” sign on your yard this moving season…
Guess What? It’s a Seller’s Market Right Now!
If you’ve spent the last year slowly improving your home while sheltering in place, that’s wonderful news! Well done investing in yourself and using time wisely! Your patience and hard work will now pay off. The real estate market is currently a “sellers market” meaning there is a high demand for homes. This is great news if you are looking for a fast and profitable real estate investment turn over. Sellers aren’t the only ones looking for change this year.
“Heading into 2021, housing market experts are predicting a year of high demand and rising home prices. After an initial drop in housing market activity last spring coinciding with stay-at-home orders and closed businesses, home buying and selling rebounded quickly. Buyers are still eager to move, but the lesser supply of homes on the market in many parts of the U.S. is contributing to rising home prices. As a result, it remains a seller’s market that benefits homeowners who are choosing to sell now.” US News
Contact Your Real Estate Attorney
One of the very first things homeowners should do when selling their home is to contact their real estate attorney or hire a new one. A reputable attorney like Ben Weaver can help you create a timeline and plan for selling. Don’t wait until you’re deep into a confusing legal situation to ask for help! Work with a lawyer beforehand to stay ahead of any potential hiccups. Getting a consultation is always a wise move when it comes to entering any important legal real estate situation. It’s most likely been a while since you’ve needed to consult a realtor. This person will provide the perspective of fresh eyes on the market.
“Agents who work for the seller, also known as listing agents, advise clients on how to price the property and prepare it for sale, including providing tips on last-minute improvements that can boost the price or encourage speedy offers.” Investopedia
Your attorney can help connect you with a knowledgeable real estate agent or realtor in your area. Having an agent who knows your area is a huge advantage when creating a game plan for selling your home.
“Ben was referred to us by our realtor and we couldn’t be happier with his services. His rates were great and his level of service was even better. He’s very professional, knowledgeable, and quickly addressed all of our emails and calls. I am definitely going to recommend him to my friends and family.” – Andrew C .
Find Out The Value of Your Home
The market value of your home may have gone up or down since your original purchase. Your home value changes as the neighborhood changes. Location is everything. Factors such as schools, transportation, and local parks can boost property value. Avoid making the mistake of setting your home at a lower price due to lack of knowledge about the average home listings in your area. While researching your property value, you may have discovered your home isn’t up to par compared to homes selling at the price point you desire or the local competition. After speaking with your agent and attorney, come up with a game plan to increase your home’s value!
Tips for Increasing Your Home’s Value
Boosting the value of your home doesn’t equate throwing large amounts of money at your property. There can be some simple DIY projects or hiring a local contractor to help you achieve the property upgrade. A good place to start is with your curb appeal. First impressions make all the difference! Even when creating listing images for your home online, you will need to take high quality photos. The only way to achieve this is by working on the curb appeal.
- Ask for help from loved ones. Take some quick pictures of your property and ask others what think of your property and their suggestions for improvements. Make a list of what they like and don’t like.
- Declutter your lawn, even though you may love all your gnomes and lawn furnishings, they could possibly make your property look crowded or even neglected.
- Start working on your walkways and driveways. If there are cracks or missing pieces, begin the process of replacing them.
- Add winter and spring foliage. Seasonal landscaping can make all the difference in making your home stand out from the rest. Nothing adds excitement more to a home than living, vibrant plants! Having pristine landscaping will elevate your property to new heights – aesthetically and even financially speaking. Start with adding lovely planters in areas you’d like to stand out and house hugging shrubs. Of course choose plants that will thrive in your environment. “The right foundation planting for most houses is a nice mix of evergreen and deciduous material, with dwarf varieties in order to keep window views open, some repetition of plants for a unified look, and an overall casual, naturalistic feeling.” This Old House
Clean Your Home for Successful Showings
Scrub until you can’t scrub anymore more! Homes that are squeaky clean are proven to sell faster. Even if the potential home buyer isn’t walking through the property for themselves, their realtor will be taking notes and doing video walkthroughs with them virtually. They may notice things you’ve overlooked. If the prospect of a deep scrub seems overwhelming to you, dont stress! Hire an affordable cleaning professional service. Ever since the pandemic started, cleaning services are more advanced in the way they approach cleaning properties for sale and staging.
- Prep your home for a digital walk through. Take a few minutes to record on your phone a practice walk through of your property. This will give you an advantage by seeing your home through a digital buyer’s perspective. Are there any eye sores or clutter that needs to be removed?
- During March of 2020, Redfin saw such a large surge in video home tour requests: “As the coronavirus upends the buying process, house hunters are increasingly relying on Redfin’s virtual technology for viewing and closing on homes. Redfin saw a 494% increase in requests for agent-led video home tours last week, following an 80% increase the prior week, as homebuyers began relying heavily on virtual viewings amid the coronavirus outbreak. As of yesterday, 18.9% of tour requests made on Redfin.com were video-chat tour requests, up from 0.2% at the beginning of March – a 94-fold increase.”
Learn more about prepping your home for virtual showings!
Eliminate Bad Odors
Remember to remove offensive odors! Consider an outsider’s perspective if they walk into a home with strong smells. It’s important to remove any unpleasant odors after your deep clean. Open up the windows and or run the air filter. If you’re a smoker or have pets, there are always tricks to help remove these scents.
“When homeowners sell their property and move out, they sometimes leave behind lingering odors in the air and carpets.” Realtor
Here are some simple ways to cover your tracks…
- Bake cookies before walk throughs. The sweet smells are nostalgic and remind buyers of “home”.
- Change the filters in your house. The filters in your furnace, central air, and air purifiers.
- Add gentle candles or plug-ins around the house.
Get more professional tips on removing strong odors!
Hire a Professional Fixer
Find an experienced handyman to help you tackle projects that are a little too complicated for you or that are a bit too time consuming projects. Most local handymen can tackle short term projects efficiently and quickly at fair price points. If you aren’t sure who to hire, having an attorney with longstanding connections to such a professional is beyond helpful.
Here are some examples of projects well suited for a handyman:
- Fixing a broken garbage disposal
- Repairing or calibrating an HVAC thermostat
- Replacing a mailbox
- Anchoring or installing shelves
- Painting walls
- Applying wallpaper
- Removing wallpaper
- Adding locks to the interior or exterior doors
- Repairing drywall
- Replacing tile or carpet
- Cleaning gutters
- Power washing brick or siding
- Fixing cracks in stucco exteriors
- Installing an exterior walkway
Adding Small Touches Will Make a Big Difference
The finer details can really brighten up a home. Add freshly cut flowers and welcome mats to make the buyer feel positive about the property. Open the curtains and blinds to let more light in. Small touches can make a difference in someone remembering your property – especially after viewing multiple properties in a day. You want to stand out in a good way. Make them feel comfortable. If you’re not sure what small details might improve your property, ask your realtor or agent for assistance.
“Ben helped and updated us throughout the process. Professional and courteous, would recommend him anytime!” – James C.
Always Be Ready to Show
Your house needs to be “show ready” at all times because you never know when a buyer or their agent will walk through the front door. It isn’t uncommon for a potential buyer to want to view a property more than once. Keep the dishes clean and put away, beds made, take the garbage out, and immediately clear any clutter. This will also minimize the feeling of “surprise” if you need to show your home in a moment’s notice. The more often you can show your property, the faster it will sell!
Do you want to set a plan for how and when your property will be viewed? An attorney like Ben Weaver can help you draft up your wishes in a letter to any potential buyers who send a bid on your property.
Discuss a Plan for Closing
The last step in successfully selling your home is the closing process! This is a vital part of the selling journey and has quite a few legal documents involved, as well as mutual agreements between the seller and the buyer. Be thoroughly prepared for this important point in the sale by having an experience lawyer at your side.
Attorney Ben Weaver is very reputable and knowledgeable with handling with all types of selling and closing situations. Every closing has its challenges based on the desires of both parties. However you can rest assured that Ben always does right by his clients and makes sure you walk away from a situation feeling satisfied in the outcome.
“During the coronavirus pandemic time, we recently sold our house with Ben. Ben helped me to deal with the house sale issues especially some uncertainty happened before house closing. He was quick and professional to communicate with us as well as buyer’s lawyer. We highly recommend his team’s services.” – Zhuan Z.
With all the changes that our country has experienced lately, let’s make selling your house be the least complicated! Are you selling while buying a new home? We can help you navigate that too!
The 23 Legal team is ready to lighten your load when it comes to selling your home and we want to make your experience a pleasant one. Contact Attorney Ben Weaver today to learn how he can assist you in the process of selling your home.
Are you excited to end one chapter and begin the next? Learn more about working with Attorney Ben Weaver to successfully sell your home in 2021!
Haven’t worked with a real estate attorney before? No worries, browse our blogs to learn more:
- Common Real Estate Situations That Require An Attorney
- What Does a Real Estate Law Attorney Do?
- Q&A with Real Estate Attorney Ben Weaver
Please feel free to contact us for assistance or with any questions you have. Click here to read 5-star client reviews!
Why Choose 23 Legal
23 Legal offers Real Estate and Estate Planning legal services to individuals, families, community associations and small business owners throughout Chicagoland. We know how intimidating “the law” can be. In fact, when most people think of law offices, they think of stuffy leather chairs, huge wooden desks and pompous lawyers who charge outrageous fees. That’s not us! We believe in 1-to-1; the same lawyer should work with you all the way through. Whether you have an estate planning issue, family trust concern, or you have a legal problem in regard to a new home, business, real estate or remodel, you need a lawyer who cares. That’s where Ben comes in! We are great listeners; more than that, we are lawyers who believe that our clients always come first.
