By Ron Wynn
There is no question, uprooting yourself from a familiar and comfortable living space is an adjustment, and more times than not, it comes with a “life change” which might be anything from divorce to marriage to a job loss, to job relocation or for health reasons. All of these life changes can easily throw the “stress switch” to full throttle.
The question is, how can you keep from going over the edge by adding all the extra complications of selling a house?
First know, there are many options one has to handling the process ranging from “For Sale by owner” to full service/concierge.
You should definitely think your options through carefully before proceeding in any particular direction.
Here are 22 options to keep the stress off your shoulders:
Have realistic expectations regarding the price, the time needed to close your transaction and the need to keep your home in good order for showings at spur of the moment
Hire an agent who not only will refer you to a handyman, Gardner and painter …. but will go even further by getting estimates, negotiate and prioritize needed repairs, hire vendors, supervise repairs, provide photos and progress reports and see every detail to the home stretch.
Hire an agent who will either stage your home or work together with you and a stager to utilize your existing furnishings.
Hire an agent who will take outstanding photography and drone video to show your home digitally and to encourage serious buyers.
Hire an agent who make qualifying a buyer “a huge priority.” Check agent reviews for their “escrow fall our record.” Fall out is often the result of neglect and negligence on the part of an agent and can add tremendous stress to your life.
Hire an agent who really understands you, your family schedules, your work schedules and obligations and who can easily fit their schedules and availability to coincide with your needs. You want an agent who is flexible, adaptable and open minded to whatever is necessary.
Hire an agent who provides maid service and outdoor maintenance as needed. The agent needs to own this responsibility.
Hire a great negotiator, someone who will really go the extra mile for you even though the difference in their commission for an extra $25,000 to you would mean next to nothing for them.
Hire an agent you who might be willing to communicate with your other trusted advisors and will open minded to a change of direction if necessary.
Hire an agent who will give you impeccable updates about changes in the market, new listings, new nearby sales, price reductions include other listings.
Hire an agent who will give you great feedback reports about showings, open houses and previews.
Hire an agent who will not just tell you what you want to hear but will keep you 100% informed on everything
Hire an agent who is extremely hands on and will not delegate extremely important agent duties.
Hire an agent who will not rely on showings “by lock box” but who will in fact meet people at your home personally.
Hire an agent with a great demeanor, great attitude, nice smile and positive mindset.
Hire an agent who will help arranger a packer and mover who is proven and reliable.
Hire an agent who will not fail you to personally find you a great place to relocate to and who will handle every last detail to get you into your new place without you needing to do much of anything
Hire an agent with great reviews who has a reputation of making a move pleasant, effortless and fun.
Hire an agent who is very well respected and liked by other agents and brokers in the community.
Hire an agent with a great social media presence and with many followers including prominent people in the community.
Hire an agent who gets lots of buyer referrals from attorneys, business managers, CPA’s and businesspeople.
Hire an agent who will flawlessly handle the inspection process and who will protect your best interest when the buyer submits a long list of requested repairs or worse yet, asks for a significant price reduction.
The more homework you do in advance, the less stress you will face.
I hope these 22 points will help outline and define what you can do for a stress less home selling experience.
Named as one of the top 100 sales associates by The Wall Street Journal for the past 10 years, Ron Wynn was previously among the top 10 agents for Coldwell Banker® in the world for over 15 years consecutively, currently holding the number 14 position among all agents for the state of California and #49 among all agents in the United States.