The Ultimate 2023 Seller’s Guide

Most home sellers fantasize about a stress-free sale in which they quickly list their home, find a qualified buyer, collect the cash, and hand over the keys. If only it were that easy! In reality, selling a home involves many moving parts, some of which you can control and others beyond your control.

Given the housing market’s unprecedented growth since the coronavirus pandemic, pricing, bidding wars, and deficient inventory levels have increased over the last two years. However, due to rising interest rates (including for mortgages) and recession fears, the market is expected to settle down a bit and is already cooling significantly in some areas.

As a seller, you’ll want to be prepared and control the factors that could impact your bottom line. Hiring a great real estate agent and optimizing your home’s online appeal can result in a smoother closing — and more money in your bank.

Here are the 12 steps to selling your home in 2023:

1. Hire an agent who knows the market

The internet makes it simple to research a real estate agent’s sales history and professional designations, allowing you to select the best person for the job. Investigate agents’ online profiles to learn how long they’ve been in the industry, how many sales they’ve made, and what designations they may have received. Examine how and where they market their listings, as well as whether or not they use professional photos.

Some homeowners may be tempted to avoid paying a commission by selling their homes without the assistance of a real estate agent. This is referred to as “for sale by owner” or FSBO. As a result, sellers can save thousands of dollars on those fees, typically 5% or 6% of the total sale price.

Keep this in mind when working with an agent and negotiating a commission: Real estate fees have reached an all-time low. As a result, you may be able to get a break at the closing table.

2. Set a timeline for selling your home

Selling a home is a significant undertaking that can take two to four months from start to finish — or much longer, depending on local market conditions and available inventory. So, as soon as you decide to sell your home, start looking for real estate agents with the appropriate experience.

Consider getting a pre-sale home inspection at least two or three months before you identify any problem areas, mainly structural or mechanical issues that may need to be addressed to facilitate a sale. Then, allow enough time to schedule any required repairs.

3. Get a pre-sale home inspection

Although a pre-sale home inspection is not required, it can be a wise upfront investment. Before listing your home for sale, a thorough inspection report can identify any structural or mechanical issues. It may cost a few hundred dollars, but it will notify you of any problems buyers will likely notice during their inspection later in the process.

Sellers may be able to speed up the selling process by doing repairs with other home prep work if they are a few steps ahead of the buyer. This means it should be ready to sell quickly and without drama when the house hits the market.

4. Don’t waste money on needless upgrades

If you’re going to spend money on expensive upgrades, make sure the changes you make will provide a high return on investment. Installing new granite countertops, for example, makes no sense if you only stand to break even or lose money on them. Furthermore, if inventory levels in your area are low, these improvements may not be necessary to sell your home for top dollar.

This is where a good real estate agent can help. They frequently understand what people expect in your area and can help you plan upgrades accordingly. For example, it makes no sense to include super skylights or a steam shower if local shoppers aren’t looking for them. On the other hand, a fresh coat of neutral paint, a new carpet, and a well-kept landscape are all inexpensive ways to make an excellent first impression.

5. Get professional photos

Schedule a photographer to take marketing photos of your home with your real estate agent. High-quality images are essential because maximizing your home’s online appeal can mean the difference between a quick sale and a stalled listing.

Professional photography and virtual online tours are included in the services offered by some real estate agents. If they don’t, you might want to look for a photographer. The cost of professional photography will vary depending on the size of your home, its location, and the time it takes to photograph the property.

A professional photographer with an extensive portfolio understands how to make rooms appear larger, brighter, and more appealing. The same is true for your lawn and outdoor spaces. But, unfortunately, dimly lit online photos can turn off homebuyers before they even read about the beautiful bike path nearby or the new roof you just installed so that well-taken photos can pay off.

6. Put your house on the market

Focus on the home’s online appeal.

You’ve probably heard of curb appeal, but experts say online requests are now more critical than ever. The quality of your web presence will determine whether a visitor calls and schedules an appointment or moves on to the following listing.

Stage it and keep it clean for showings.

Real estate agents frequently advise sellers to stage their homes. Producing a home entails removing excess furniture, personal belongings, and unsightly items from the house while it is on the market and arranging rooms for optimal flow and purpose. If you’re selling a luxury home in a slow market, hiring a professional stager could help you stand out.

Let someone else show the house.

Make yourself unavailable when prospective buyers come to see your home. Allow them to imagine themselves in the space without the distraction of meeting and speaking with you. Buyers usually accompany their real estate agents when they view your home. You can also request that your agent attend showings.

7. Set a realistic price

Even in competitive markets, buyers do not want to pay more than what the comparables, or “comps,” show, so pricing is critical. However, going too high can backfire, while underestimating a home’s value can cause you to lose money.

Consult your neighborhood’s comps to price your home correctly from the start. These are information sheets about recently sold properties in a particular area. You can see what homes in your area are selling for at a glance.

Furthermore, homes with multiple price reductions may give buyers the impression that there is something wrong with the condition of your home or that it is undesirable. As a result, it’s best to avoid the need for multiple price reductions by pricing your home to appeal to the broadest pool of buyers from the start.

8. Review and negotiate offers

After your home is officially listed on the market and buyers have seen it, the offers should start coming in. A real estate agent (or attorney) is your best advocate and go-to source for advice. Buyers will most likely offer at or above the asking price if your local market is competitive and favors sellers. You may even receive multiple bids. However, if sales are slow in your area and you don’t receive many offers, you may need to be willing to negotiate.

When you receive an offer, you have three options: accept it as is, make a counteroffer, or reject it.

A counteroffer responds to an offer in which terms and price are negotiated. Counteroffers should always be made in writing with a short response time (48 hours or less) for the buyer. You can, for example, offer a credit for paint and carpet but insist on maintaining your original asking price. To sweeten the deal, you could offer to leave certain appliances behind.

9. Anticipate seller closing costs

Closing costs apply to both the buyer and the seller. The home seller usually pays the real estate agent’s commission, which ranges between 5% and 6% of the sale price.

Some other costs commonly paid by the seller include:

• Government transfer tax
• Recording fees
• Outstanding liens
• Attorney fees

Furthermore, if the buyer has agreed to pay any credits for repairs or closing costs at closing, the seller will do so. Your real estate or closing agent should provide a detailed list of all fees you will be responsible for at the closing table. While the buyer is usually responsible for most closing costs, ranging from 2% to 4% of the sales price, you should also be aware that you may be required to pay some fees.

10. Weigh the tax implications

The good news is that many home sellers will not have to pay taxes on profits from the sale of their primary residence. If you owned and lived in your home for at least two of the previous five years before selling it, you will not be required to pay taxes on any profit up to $250,000. The amount you can deduct from taxes as a married couple rises to $500,000. However, if your profit from the home sale exceeds that amount, you must report it to the IRS as a capital gain on your tax return.

11. Gather the necessary paperwork to close

A lot of paperwork is required to document a home sale properly. Organize everything in one place to make things go more quickly. Among the essential documents you’ll need to gather the following:

• Your home’s original purchase contract
• Property survey, certificate of occupancy, and certificates of compliance with local codes
• Mortgage documents
• Tax records
• An appraisal from your home purchase
• Homeowners Insurance
• Home inspection report, if you had one

12. Consider hiring a real estate attorney

Not all states require sellers to attend the closing with a real estate attorney. Hiring one may cost a few thousand dollars, but the cost may be worth it to protect such a significant financial transaction. (This is especially important if you are selling your home independently.)

An attorney can assist with paperwork, contract and document review, identifying potential issues, and ensuring the sale goes as smoothly as possible. An attorney would also be able to specify title issues that could stall your sale for weeks or months or even derail it entirely, such as:

• Outstanding liens or judgments or other encumbrances
• Trust issues
• Mortgage balances
• Tax issues
• Encroachments