How to Sell Your Home Online

Selling your home without the help of a real estate agent can save you thousands of dollars in commission or agent’s fee. Typically, the agent will ask 3-5% commission based on your asking price. Although there is a good reason why home owners would opt to use a real estate broker – they don’t have the time, they don’t have the know-how, home selling is time consuming, etc.

The introduction of online marketing makes home selling easier as more and more people are using the internet to browse and buy products and services online; and home buying is not excluded. Online property websites offer the same services as the traditional real estate agents but their fee is considerably less.

Property Sales Websites

These property websites work similarly as the classifieds of your local paper; however, the main advantage is they allow you to reach a much wider audience. With a very minimal fee, your property will have more exposure allowing you to attract more potential buyers. There are even DIY house sale websites that will let you list your property for free.

Social Media

Who does not know Facebook? Twitter? Social media websites have become a necessity for the net users and you can take advantage of their popularity. With social media site like Facebook, you can target your marketing to a group of people without being discriminating. Prepare a short video highlighting your home’s best features and upload it to Facebook. You can save time by virtually showing your home to potential buyers and at the same time by answering possible questions about the property.

Online Estate Agents

If you really need the help of a real estate agent but still want to save on agent’s fee, you can work with an online estate agents. Online estate agents’ fee is much less compared to street estate agents while offering the same services. They will help you market your home, handle negotiations, and help you in property showing as needed.

For a guaranteed, quick, and hassle-free home selling, contact private property investor like Lucas Properties. Lucas Properties buys homes in any condition at any given time.

Why You Should Sell Your House During Christmas

Christmas is a time to be jolly but when it comes to selling a house during this holiday season, it is often viewed with mixed emotions. There are advantages and disadvantages of selling your house during holidays. Should you choose to sell your house during the holidays, make sure that you can find an agent who is not also on vacation during this time. Searching for an agent is not a problem if you are selling the house on your own.

There is no doubt that you will encounter challenges when selling a property but when you know what to do and how to do it, you’ll be able to overcome these challenges. You can turn it into your advantage if you view holiday season in the following situations.

Most people are happy and relax during the holidays. When people are in “good mood” they are more likely ready to negotiate and to act. This will be easier for both parties involved.

Christmas add a romantic appeal to your house. In preparing your house for the sale, you can make the festivities an excuse to decorate your house lavishly. Decorations need not be overly expensive; few Christmas lights when placed strategically will transform your house into a warm and inviting place to live in.

Inventory of houses for sale during Christmas is low. This means you have less competition. Buyers will have fewer houses to choose from; so if you make your house stand out you will be able to close the deal before the holidays are over.

But, should you wait for Christmas before you sell your house? The answer is NO. You don’t have to wait for Christmas or any holidays to come because Lucas Properties buys houses anytime.

Lucas Properties buys house as is and they pay with cash. Just fill out the online form and an expert will contact you.

Home Selling: Pros and Cons of Open Houses

Open houses are a good means of selling a house but like any other methods, it has its share of advantages and drawbacks. Before you decide if it’s worth it to have an open house, make sure you know the pros and cons.

Pro

Open houses attract buyers. There are people who are not comfortable working with an agent so they prefer to buy houses on their own. Open houses provide a less intimidating way of viewing your home. Potential buyers who do not feel pressured by hovering agents will have a good time of considering themselves in your home.

Con

Open houses attract the wrong crowd. Not all onlookers are serious buyers. Some are just nosy neighbors while others are looking at some things they could steal upstairs while you are busy answering questions from other house shoppers. A large number of shoppers also pose risk of property damage. Visitors who tend to get comfortable with your belongings might leave dirt tracks or worst, break valuable vases and furniture.

Pro

You can save on staging costs with open houses. Staging your house for the sale involves time and money. Drawing multiple buyers at the same time could mean less private showings resulting in less last-minute preparations and staging. Since open houses are less intimidating, people are inclined to give you feedback about your house. These feedback can be valuable information towards improving your house and close on the next buyer.

Con

Not all houses’ location is perfect for an open house. Some cannot just accommodate several cars parking in so the owners can go inside the open house. If you are still living in the house you are planning to sell, open house means you have to vacate the premises together with your children and pets.

Bottom line, open house does not work for everybody. If you want to have a quick sale without the hassle of home staging and showing, sell your house to private investors.

LucasProperties is a private investor who has been in business of buying houses and other properties with cash. Over the years, they have helped property owners disposed their homes hassle-free.

Home Selling: How to Choose a Real Estate Agent

Selling a home can be easy if you know what to do. There are many ways to sell a home – for sale by owner or FSBO, hire a real estate agent, through an auction, or sell privately.

When you do a quick search for real estate agents, you will be surprise to know that there are hundreds of them. Choosing the right one can make or break your deal. Referral from family or friends is always a good start in getting a good agent since they have had a first-hand experience with that agent. They can tell you if that agent is any good or not.

If you don’t have a referral, you can still get the best agent to sell your home and these questions will help you identify that agent.

How long have you been an agent? Although new agents bring in fresh ideas, veteran agents still take the lead. They have more experience and they know the market well, so they will more likely represent you better.

How can I contact you? There is nothing more frustrating than not be able to reach your agent. A common complaint from home owners is that after they hire the agent, they hear nothing. A good agent should keep you well informed. He should be available in common communication channels such as phone, email, and social media.

How many home units have you sold? The higher the number of units sold the better. This goes to show that an agent is good at what he does. The number must be recent, that is within the last six months or at least a year. If he has not sold a unit within a year, then he should have a good explanation for it.

How will you market my home? A good agent should be able to list your home in MLS; this listing targets a wide range of potential buyers. He should be able to provide you with a marketing plan with proof what option works and what does not based on his experience.

If you do not want to work with an agent, you can sell your home privately. This is done by working with private investors. Unlike hiring an agent, you don’t have to pay for their services. Private investors, like Lucas Properties buy houses all the time regardless of its condition.

How Much Is Your House Worth?

If you are planning to sell your house, you should know its worth. Setting the right price is one major aspect of your marketing plan regardless of whether you do the selling yourself or you hire an agent. The agent can easily run a market analysis but you don’t want to be blindsided by the agent’s recommendation alone.

Location

A house’s location plays an important part in its value. A property owner can’t get away with this one. If your house happens to be in a desirable location, you can always get a higher price than you can for the same house in less desirable neighborhood. Houses near to schools, shopping malls, restaurants and coffee shops, and transportation areas are expected to be more expensive.

House Condition

A well-maintained house has a better chance of selling for more than a run-down house in the same location. No one wants to buy an expensive house with less than perfect heating system, with leaking roofs, with broken windows, or with poor interior. Keeping your house in top condition will give you a good return of investment should you decide to sell.

Features

The number of bedrooms and bathrooms, presence of a swimming pool or indoor gym, square footage of the house, modern kitchens and bathrooms can also increase your house’s value. Obviously, a six-bedroom house costs more than a two-bedroom house.

Comparable and Market Condition

Comparable houses can also be used as basis for your house’s value. Check the recent sold houses in your area and take note of the houses’ price which is similar to yours. Your asking price should be within the same range, otherwise, your price will be considered as too high.

As soon as you have decided on your asking price, you can focus on your marketing strategy to find potential buyers.

Lucas Properties LLC buys houses anytime. They offer cash for distressed houses, houses that need repair, unwanted houses, inherited houses, and the like. 

Why it is good to Sell Your House Today

The economy is starting to get back up again and mortgage companies have been less strict in their loan requirements. FHA has a ‘back to work’ program which allows boomerang buyers to be back in the market looking for a new house.
These mean that more buyers are now searching for new homes to acquire.

Given these circumstances, is now a good time to sell your house? It is difficult to predict the housing market. It is like predicting the stock sales. As a home owner who is trying to sell, the decision should be based on not just “When can I sell to get the most money?”

If you have moved out to a new home because of job relocation and your old home is just sitting vacant, then you will have to decide whether you can afford the maintenance costs of two houses or not. You can have it rented however if the revenue is not enough to cover the maintenance costs, then it may be wise to sell your house today.

Location, location, location. In real estate, this is one factor that is not time sensitive or bound to market conditions. It is true that real estate market is recovering in most areas; if you want to sell your house now, do a comparative market analysis in your area so you can position your house aggressively. If you price your house based on other locations’ market condition, you might overprice it. That is to say, a house in the farm land may cost less than a house in the heart of the city.

If you simply want to move on with your life, if you think that the new home will bring more happiness to your family, if the new home will bring in more revenue, then today is as good as any to sell your house.

Lucas Properties LLC is a private investor who has been in real estate industry for years. They buy houses in any condition regardless of the market condition or location. Visit their website to get more details.

Fix It or Sell As Is

If you are planning to put your house in the market, it is expected that you will face competition. There are already hundreds of ‘for sale’ houses in your area that you might think to fix your house before putting up the ‘for sale’ sign to set it above the rest. Fixing up means either repair or renovation and there’s a big difference between the two. Repair can be refer to fixing up a broken water system while renovation can be refer to applying a new paint color to any part of the house.

While fixing up can boost your house’s sale ability, it requires time and money. Before you make any decisions, think of your target buyers and how much fixing up will do.

Target Buyers

Do your buyers need a fixed up home? In your area, check the houses that were sold for the past six months. Are they being fixed or renovated before they got sold?

Some buyers prefer a house that requires a little repair. Usually, they are the ones who don’t qualify to buy a more expensive house or they simply want to ‘personalize’ the house. Some buyers are house flippers; they are the ones who want to make a profit by fixing the house themselves.

How far would you go?

While minor repairs are not a problem, over-improving can be an issue. Buyers will normally look for the least expensive house in the most expensive and desirable subdivision they can manage. If you overdo your renovation, this will put your house at the top of the market from the pricing perspective. It’s not bad but it’s also not the best place to be from a selling standpoint.

If the cost of improvement won’t return the investment, it may be unwise to go through with an upgrade. You can sell your house as is and still make some money. Sell your house for cash to private property investors.

Lucas Properties buys houses in any condition. You can walk away with cash in as short as seven days. Contact Lucas Properties now.

Common Reasons Why Your House is Not Selling

Why the house has been sitting on the market for months can be attributed to several reasons. As an owner, it is wise to know the things that push buyers away so you can create actions to prevent them.

Lack of curb appeal. First impressions last – this much is true in every real estate transactions. You need to capture a buyer’s attention and make sure to leave a lasting impression otherwise, he will simply move on to the next listings. But what kind of impressions should you make? The kind that will make any buyer think that your house is what he needs.

External maintenance is as important as the house maintenance. If a buyer is turned off by a lack of exterior maintenance (bad fence, cluttered pathways, and overgrown grass) then most likely he will have a bad impression of the house itself. It is no wonder that he may not even take the time to see the house.

Unreasonable expectations. Overpricing is the most common reason why buyers stay away from your property. Although it is typical that as an owner, you will think that your house is above all the others, this is not always the case. To attract buyers, you have to think like a buyer.

• Pretend that you are shopping for a new house and compare yours to others. 
• Is your house beautifully staged?
•  Is it located in a more desirable area of the subdivision?
•  Does it have all the modern amenities?
•  Is it built by highly regarded home builders?

Does your house compare? If your answer is NO, then you have a work to do.

Lack of proper marketing. You have the most beautiful house in the area but do buyers know about it? Aggressive marketing plays an important function in getting potential buyers. Whether you are selling the house on your own or you are working with an agent, you have to make sure that your property has the maximum exposure. Make use of the social media, create a personalized website, list in multiple listings, distribute flyers, and ask for referrals.

If you need help in selling your house, contact Lucas Properties. They have been in the industry for many years and have helped many home owners who find it difficult to sell their homes.