Inside Houston Real Estate

There’s a lot of competition in the current market for Houston homes for sale. If you’re thinking about adding your home to the list, this checklist is for you.

#1. Set your goals. What do you expect from your sale? Do you just want to get rid of the home, or do you want the highest price possible? Will you be ready if a buyer wants to close quickly? The answers to these questions factor into how much time it takes for a house to come off the market.

#2. Decide whether to use an agent or not. Although many Houston homes for sale go faster and at better prices with a real estate agent, it’s still possible to get a decent price doing it yourself. If you decide to use an agent, interview them and talk to their past clients to make sure you feel confident in their services.

#3. Set your home price. This is tricky, because if you don’t set the right price, your house can sit on the market for a long time and sell for much less than it’s worth. If you hire an agent, they’ll analyze comparable homes and find a good price. If you don’t hire an agent, make sure you look at recent sales on comparable homes, as well as neighborhood demographics to find the right price.

#4. Find the problems and get serious issues fixed. Although you aren’t obligated to hire a home inspector, a professional home inspection can help head off serious issues that can delay the sale. If you can fix the serious issues, do so. If you can’t, you can still sell the house “as is,” as a fixer-upper. Keep records of everything you do fix.

#5. Consider staging your home. From curb appeal to inside style, home stagers can help your house look its best. Studies show that, in general, staged homes sell faster and for better prices than those that haven’t been staged.

Adding your house to the list of Houston homes for sale will be an exercise in patience, but following this checklist can help make the exercise a much shorter one.

Links:

1. Real estate agent

http://homebuying.about.com/od/realestateagents/tp/findagent.htm

2. Find the right price

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13108482

3. Home stagers - if you offer home staging services, or recommend a home stager, link to your page about that service. Otherwise, link to this:

http://www.iahsp.com/

4. If you are thinking of buying another home after you sell yours.