Unless special circumstances such as a job transfer spur quick action, selling a home is a long, deliberate process. Usually, homeowners meditate for weeks about whether they should move.
For those who’ve passed the contemplation stage and regret that they missed out on the robust market this past year, here’s a guide on how to be first off the starting block next spring.
Home buying and selling “season,” meaning the time when contracts are signed and closings occur most frequently, is in the spring. But especially if the weather is mild, home selling season can kick off as early as January. Super Bowl Sunday is the benchmark that real estate agents themselves use to mark the end of the winter doldrums, says Mary Liebrock of Koenig & Strey Realtors in Northbrook.
So, a start now means that even a poky, but determined, seller can be the first on the block to post the “For Sale” sign.
With the exception of the compulsively neat, most homeowners have refurbishing, repairs and decluttering to do before their home is ready for prospective buyers.
Preparing for a sale next year means that homeowners will have time to do many jobs, such as painting, themselves and save the money it would take to hire contractors, notes Robert Irwin, author of “Seller Beware” (Dearborn Financial) and numerous other real estate books.
Even for those who aren’t do-it-yourselfers, fall is a good season to hire help, notes Ellen Carmignani, an agent with Baird & Warner in Hinsdale. “In the spring and summer, there’s so much remodeling going on that it’s hard to find workers.”
Concentrate on the outside of your home first, painting if necessary and even impressing buyers with a new front door or door handle, advises Irwin. Starting in early autumn also gives buyers a chance to plant bulbs and do other landscaping that will yield attractive blossoms and greenery come spring.
– Early October. When sprucing up your home, think like a minimalist who loves neutral colors. On the inside, less is more. “I suggest taking about one-third of your furniture and possessions and getting rid of it, not necessarily throwing it out, but storing it,” says Irwin. “If it then looks barren to you, it probably looks just about right to a potential buyer.”
Indeed, a buyer doesn’t want to feel as though he’s invading another family’s abode. He wants to feel he’s in a place that he could easily move all of his furniture and mementos into, points out David Higgins, broker and owner of Carriage Realty in Libertyville. Clear away clutter as well as some family photos, religious artifacts and other personal items.
It’s tough to rip your kids’ artwork off the refrigerator and stash away family photos, says Leslie Levine, author of “Will This Place Ever Feel Like Home?” (Dearborn Financial), and who just moved her family from New York to Northbrook. But it’s easier to store away personal mementos “if you think of it as a short-term business proposition,” advises Levine.
– October touring. The idea is for your family’s home to have the same pristine, somewhat impersonal feel exuded by model homes in newly built developments, maintains Michael Pearson, an agent with Century 21 Anchor, Arlington Heights. Visit a couple of open models for inspiration.
Agrees author Irwin: “The closer you can get your house to looking like a model, the better. Your main objective is to have buyers envision themselves in your home, and allow nothing to distract them from that.”
– Inspection question. By late October, diligent homeowners should be well under way on all of their cleaning and refurbishing projects. One of the most perplexing real estate questions today involves home inspection by a professional inspector who’s trained to look for flaws in the roof, furnace, plumbing and other elements.
Under Illinois law, home sellers now must truthfully answer a roster of questions concerning the condition of their home. After a buyer submits a contract on a home, he routinely hires a professional inspector to uncover any flaws that he has been unable to notice, or that weren’t disclosed by the seller. (The seller may also be unaware of problems.)
If the inspection report reveals problems, especially serious flaws, then the buyer and seller must come to terms on how repairs will be made, or how much the purchase price should be reduced to compensate for flaws.
“You are way ahead of the game,” says Carmignani, “if you find a stringent inspector to do an inspection in the fall.” Any problems can then be repaired.
On the other hand, Pearson says: “I wouldn’t recommend an inspection. The inspector discloses everything he finds wrong, and then the seller would have to acknowledge those things when he fills out the disclosure statement.”
A potential buyer may be unconcerned about problems, but listing a litany of flaws could put off some buyers, he maintains.
Pat Joseph, an agent with Re/Max Villager in Glenview, adds: “Most people already know the condition of their home. They know the weak spots.”
A compromise solution may be to get the furnace and other systems cleaned and checked in order to present recent certification that things are in good working order.
– November shopping. Another tricky real estate question involves whether to buy a home before you sell. Many people think it’s prudent to wait until you receive a contract on your own home before you contract to buy another.
Others maintain that if you have your heart set on a certain style home in a designated neighborhood, you may have to buy before your own home is under contract, in order to avoid losing a chance to get what you want.
But the chicken-egg quandary of which comes first, selling or buying, comes into play only after the “For Sale” sign goes up. It’s not advisable to buy before you even put your house on the market, say Realtors, but it is wise to firm up where and what you’d like to purchase.
“The seller should have a good feeling of where he’s going,” confirms Chuck Moutvic, broker-owner of Realty Executives Midwest in Darien. “Sometimes they (sellers) get a contract (from a buyer) and then they can’t figure out where they’re going to go. Retired people, especially, might be thinking of Florida and other places and just aren’t sure what they’re doing.”
Not only should sellers have themselves pointed in a certain direction, but doing some home shopping can educate homeowners on what price their own home might fetch by comparing costs, notes Irwin.
– Late November. To reassure buyers, consider having the furnace cleaned and checked or conducting a home radon test, suggests Higgins, and then present the papers showing the recent overhaul to buyers.
Lastly, a home seller should call in at least three Realtors to present a marketing plan for the home, including a suggested sales price and sales strategy, advises Irwin. They might also provide some hints on home improvements to entice potential buyers. Select the agent whose sales plan seems the most ambitious and logical, and who has a personality you find easy to work with, adds Irwin.
You may not even have to wait until early spring to clinch a sale. “An agent might already have a client who’d want your home,” says Carmignani. “You may not even have to go through the stress of marketing it.”
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Learn how to sell your home at the highest possible price, plus strategies for tax-wise moves and the top 25 features that sell homes, at chicagotribune.com/go/saleplan.
