Selling a Home

It is the one thing that almost everyone does at one point in their lives - sells their home. This can be a very confusing time, filled with many questions and few answers. It is hard to understand all of the questions you may have about selling your home. Fortunately, Hometown Realty Group can help.

Hometown Realty Group can help you with all of the questions you have about selling your home. Hometown Realty Group has many years of experience in the real estate industry. We pride ourselves on quality customer service. Our customers come first and we make selling your home, the same way. We will make you our first priority.

Let's begin the home selling process so that you can understand how easy and hassle-free Hometown Realty Group agents make it for our valued clients.

Choose a link from the list below, or follow them step-by-step to learn more:

• Preparing to Sell your Home
• So You're Ready to Sell your Home
• Tips From the Photographer
• You're Ready to List
• Determining Property Value
• Marketing Your Home
• Showing Appointment Instructions
• The Offer
• Preparing to Close
• Five Days to a Smooth Close & Move
• Close
• Tell Your Friends About Hometown Realty Group

#1 Preparing to Sell your Home

As the son rises and sets, so do the seasons of our lives where transition is inevitable. Selling your home can be an emotional and anxiety producing experience filled with questions and ambiquity.

Hometown Realty Group can pray with you and help discern this transition with the hope of making it as smooth as possible for you and your family. In order to prepare you for the home selling process we have provided a step by step list below so you will be informed and knowledgable throughout the entire process.

The first question you might want to ask yourself is, "Why do I want to sell my home?" Do you need more space? Are you an empty nester looking for a smaller space? Have you accepted a job in a different part of the country? All of these questions affect the potential sale of your home and the negotiating process of that sale.

You may also want to begin making a list of all of the interior and exterior projects that you want to complete before placing your home on the market.

Contacting a Hometown Realty Group Real Estate Agent will point you in the right direction, too. Our agents have the knowledge and understanding of the market. They can provide reliable information and get you moving in the right direction towards the sale of your home.

#2 So You're Ready to Sell your Home

Assessing your home is key in beginning the home selling process. You may want to ask yourself, "What would I like to see or not see if I were touring this home as a potential home buyer?

If you want to get the best possible price for your house, start by making sure it looks its best, inside and out. The following checklist offers several easy things you can do to improve a buyer's first impression. While all the points may not apply to you, the process will help you develop an eye for the most attractive aspects of your house.

Living/Dining/Family/Bedrooms:

• Repaint/touch up walls and ceilings
• Repair/replace old moulding
• Shampoo carpet and/or wash and wax floors
• Remove excess furniture
• Clean curtains, shutters, blinds, etc
• Replace old bedspreads

Kitchen/Baths:

• Replace faucets/fixtures
• Repaint/repaper walls
• Thoroughly clean range/oven, refrigerator and other appliances
• Clear out and clean cabinets, drawers, and medicine cabinets
• Remove clutter from countertops
• Clean or replace curtains
• Grout tubs/showers
• Replace old toilet seats/shower curtains

General:

• Replace burned out light bulbs
• Clear cobwebs from corners and doorways
• Wash light switches, handrails, and doorknobs
• Clear and clean all closets
• Add "welcoming" touches: potted plants, dried flowers, etc

Exterior:

• Repaint siding/trim
• Repair gutters/downspouts
• Repair/repaint fences
• Seal driveway
• Remove oil stains from garage floor
• Wash all windows
• Remove screens(windows appear cleaner)
• Trim trees, hedges, shrubs
• Weed/feed lawn
• Remove clutter

Entranceway:

• Check working order of doorbell and exterior light
• Replace welcome mat
• Repair/repaint storm door and/or front door
• Clear interior entry of all clutter
• Clear and clean out front hall closet

Problems like chipped paint, dirty walls, windows and doors, unfinished remodeling projects and cluttered garages are all areas for home selling improvement. Treat the sale of your home as you would with any day living in your residence. Neat, tidy and organized works!

#3 Tips to Prepare for Listing Photos

When preparing your home for photos at the listing appointment with your agent, please remember Less is More. Potential buyers want to picture themselves in the house, so taking the time to remove personal objects will help buyers see your home without distraction. Homes with small children and pets will understandably show evidence of life with kids and animals, yet every effort to keep toys stowed in toy boxes, and childrens rooms, playrooms, and pet areas neat are very much appreciated.

Kitchen:

• Declutter countertops
• Wash and put away dishes or place dirty dishes in dishwasher
• Clean faucets, sink, counter tops, and floor
• Remove all refrigerator magnets

Bathrooms:

• Declutter countertops
• Clean faucets, sinks, countertops/floor
• New shower curtain/rug/towels

All Other Rooms:

• Declutter dresser tops
• Remove excess furniture
• Remove family photos
• Minimize artwork from walls
• Minimize knick knacks on tables and mantels
• Open curtains/blinds
• Make beds
• Dust/Polish tables and chairs
• Dust ceiling fan blades
• Vacuum all floors
• Replace all burned out light bulbs

Outside:

• Photographing the front of your home is best when in full sunlight, so let us know whether morning or afternoon would be better.
• New front door mat
• Mow lawn
• Refresh landscaping mulch
• Sweep driveway
• Move vehicles from the front of the home
• Weather permitting, add hanging flower pots or ferns

#4 You're Ready to List

Once you are ready to list your home, plan on meeting with your Hometown Realty Group agent for about one to two hours. At this time you will be asked to sign an Exclusive Authorization to Sell contract along with required disclosures. Also at this time your agent will put up a For Sale sign an attach the lockbox to your home for easy access for agents showing your home. Please be sure to have and extra key made for these appointments.

Before you list your home, it is important to do your homework on the real estate companies in your area.

1. Search the Internet for your local real estate companies.
2. Review local publications for agent advertisements.
3. Call each company to compare commission fees, marketing campaigns and yearly sales volume.
4. Talk to your friends and neighbors. 9 times out of 10, someone you know has sold their home and can provide a credible recommendation to point you in the right direction.

When choosing a real estate agent, do not be afraid to meet with many different agents. They are, after all, competing for your business. This competition is what makes the real estate industry successful.

Feel free to ask them the following questions:

• How many years of experience do you have in this market?
• What is your selling experience in my community?
• What professional certifications do you hold (ex. Certified Residential Specialist–CRS)?
• What services will you provide for me as my agent?
• How will you represent my property?
• Can you provide a market analysis for my property?
• How will you determine the price of my home?
• What is the fee for your services?
• Can you provide all of the different scenarios with the sale of my property? (as far as commissions and fees)
• Can you explain the paperwork that I will need to sign?
• What is the timeframe for listing my property with you?

#5 Determining Property Value

There are a number of factors that go into determining the value of a home.

• It is realistic to compare the homes in your area and the asking prices of those homes.
• The law of supply and demand always comes into play. Do you live in an area with increasing job opportunities or an increasing supply of homes?
• Owners needs greatly impact the selling price of a home. Do you need a quick sell or do you have time to sit on your sale?
• The selling price is not cut and dry. On many occasions, the seller will negotiate the price, split closing costs or offer different allowances to the buyer, to make the sale of the home complete.

Only a qualified Hometown Realty Group agent can provide a fair market analysis of the homes for sale in your area. A Market Analysis is usually free and without obligation. For more information on how to receive a FREE Market Analysis that will help you properly determine the value of your home, click here to contact us here.

#6 Marketing Your Home

There are a number of different ways that an agent can drive traffic to view your home:

• Multiple Listing Service (MLS)
• Websites/Internet
• Yard Signs
• Brochures on Yard Signs
• Monthly Newsletter to contact list
• Social Media

#7 Showing Appointment Instructions

1. With reasonable notice, make your home accessible for salespeople and prospective showings.

2. A company associate will be calling to:

• Schedule an appointment for themselves
• Schedule an appointment for another associate from another company office
• Schedule an appointment for another corporating broker

3. Request and note the name, agency and phone number of every agent calling to make an appointment.

4. Prior to the appointment, open draperies, blinds, etc, turn on all of the interior lights (and exterior lights if after dusk) and tidy up bedrooms, baths, and kitchen.

5. Vacating the home is an ideal situation for the demonstration of your property. Whenever possible, do not stay in your house with the prospects during showings or, have as few people as possible in the house during showings since the potential buyers will feel like and intruder and want to hurry through your house to get away from the crowd. If you are there during showings, please stay in the background when the buyers are in your home. The agent knows the buyers needs and desires and can better emphasize the features of your home when you are not present. If there are any questions, the agent will find you if you are needed. Have confidence in your agent! Let the agent discuss the selling price, terms, possession dates, and other factors with the buyer. Remember, the agent has worked for many hours with the prospects, and knows what they are looking for. Let him or her do the job without interference and bring negotiations to a satisfactory conclusion.

6. Notify me immediately of any problems or concerns encountered while the property is shown.

#8 The Offer

An acceptable offer depends on many different things:

• Is the proposed offer near the asking price?
• The timeframe of the seller – Does the seller have another house payment? Insurance?
• Does the owner have enough time to wait for the agent to bring them more potential buyers?
• What if the home is listed and never receives a single offer?
• What if several offers are received at the same time?

The Counter-Offer

When potential buyers are searching for a home, they can respond in three different ways to the seller(s):

1. This home is not what we were looking for. We are not interested in the property.
2. We are interested in the home and we will purchase the property on the buyer's terms per the real estate agreement.
3. We are interested in the home, but here is our counter-offer for the property.

Negotiating

This negotiating process can at times seem very complicated. However, if you are equip with the right Hometown Realty Group agent, all of this can be made hassle-free.

During the negotiating process of the sale of a home, the seller can react in one of three different ways:

1. Accept the buyer's proposed offer
2. Decline the buyer's offer
3. Make a new counter-offer

#9 Preparing to Close

You will need to notify your Hometown Realty Group agent of an attorney that you would like to prepare the deed to convey title from you as the homeowner to the purchasers. If you do not already have an attorney your agent can supply you with a list of professionals.

Order the Pest/Well/Septic Inspection:

Within 30 days to closing, a pest, well and septic inspection must be ordered if applicable for your property. We will take care of ordering these inspections for you. Let your agent know if you have a preference on who does these inspections for you. If you do not know of anyone, your agent can supply you with a list of recommendations.

#10 Five Days to a Smooth Closing Move

Here is a day-by-day checklist of things to do during your final week in your old house.

Four Days Before:

Schedule final utility meter reading for the day of closing, including:

• Gas/fuel oil
• Electricity
• Water/sewer

Three Days Before:

• Go to the post office and arrange for mail to be forwarded to new address.
• Cancel newspaper subscriptions, cable TV service, telephone and garbage/recycling collection.

Two Days Before:

• Review the preliminary final HUD settlement statement from the closing attorney or title company.
• Check to make sure all fees, tax adjustments and other charges are correct.

Closing Day:

• Before you leave, sweep out the house and make certain all your belongings are out.
• When you leave for the closing, make sure you have all house keys and garage door openers.
• Bring photo ID
• Immediately after the closing is completed, call your insurance agent and cancel your homeowner's policy.

#11 Close

Plan to spend an hour at the attorney's or title company's office. The attorney or title agent will explain everything you sign. Keep these documents. They will be important for tax reasons. You should talk to your accountant about that.

#12 Tell Your Friends About Hometown Realty Group

Our business and continued success depends on referrals from good customers like you. We appreciate your referrals and we promise to give excellent service to anyone you send our way.

Thank you for allowing us to b e a part of this journey with you. We pray continued blessings upon you and your family.