Hello New Jersey homeowners! Let’s go over the basics of what is the process of selling a house. No scary terminology, no pay-to-read guides. I am here just to give New Jersey home sellers a better understanding of what the process is. The steps to selling a house in NJ can seem scary so let’s go over what you need to know in order to list your home on the market.
Process of Selling a House
Firstly, you need to know is that steps to selling a house with a realtor are going to look different than selling your home on your own. I am going to go over what the process of selling a house is when using a realtor because of one key detail: it’s the better option for you. Seriously! If you think you are saving money by skipping getting a realtor to sell your home you would be wrong. Real estate agents are the experts and it shows. It has been proven time and time again that home owners make more money when selling their homes with a realtor than without. Not to mention real estate agents make the process of selling a house way easier! Knowing that: here’s the steps to selling a house with a realtor:
First Steps to Selling a House in NJ
- Are you ready? If you’re asking, “what is the first step in selling my home”, be prepared to ask yourself a lot more questions! There are a lot of steps to take to sell your home but the first (and most important) is to check in with yourself. Are you emotionally prepared to sell? Will you get cold feet when you hear your home’s market value? Are you in a financial situation that allows you to find your new home? What’s your home equity? Market value minus mortgage balance is your home equity. Avoid selling your house with negative equity at all costs!
- Pick a real estate agent! What is a selling agent? What’s a listing agent? What’s the difference between a selling agent and a listing agent? Listing agents are also called listing brokers. This is what you need. A listing agent will help you sell your home as quick as possible for the most possible. A selling agent- not to be confused with a seller agent- is the agent that will be helping the home buyer.
- Get your home ready! An important first step to selling your home is making your home sellable. This process is also called staging. It means making your home look appealing to potential buyers. This ranges from just decluttering to going as far as hiring a professional stager to make your home more appealing. This process is important for determining a home’s worth.
Steps to Selling a House by Owner
As I mentioned above, the process of selling a house by owner is not ideal. However, I figured I would be thorough and give the explanation of the First Steps to Selling a House in NJ when doing it by yourself.
First Steps to Selling Your home Yourself
- Are you ready? If you’re asking, “what is the process for selling my home by owner”, be prepared to ask yourself a lot more questions! (Step 1 is always asking questions in case you didn’t notice!) The key question here is do you have the time? The steps to selling a house in NJ are tedious, even with a real estate agent. You need to be aware that the “for sale by owner” process is much more tedious. To determine if it is right for you, think of the time you will need to spend researching local real estate laws, your home’s value on the market, and understanding terminology in the required paperwork. In conclusion, it’s not impossible but it is a lot like learning a new language.
- Make a plan! If you are going into the real estate private sale process expecting to do it alone, here is your reality check! At some point in the process, you are going to need professional help. You need to plan ahead what corners you cannot cut. Will you be hiring a professional home stager? Do you need to hire an appraiser? Do you need a real estate lawyer? A home photographer for the listing? Someone to market the home? Ultimately, no one can do it all (especially if you are caring for kids and/or working full time!) so make sure you decide what you’re doing.
- Read, Read, Read! I cannot emphasize enough the importance of educating yourself through this process. Here are some of my other blog posts for education on the process of selling a house by owner.
