Selling your house is something you’ll have to do a few times in your life. And unless you know a local Racine/Kenosha real estate agent who will sell your house for free or a hugely discounted commission… it can be a real pain and an expensive process for you as well.
Since 2013, the housing sector has been experiencing a major recovery. Selling your house now will definitely be profitable if you do it right. It is about using smart marketing strategies and being realistic about your expectations.
This article will provide some guidelines to help you sell your Racine house by yourself.
How To Sell Your House Yourself In Racine-Kenosha, Wisconsin – Let’s Dive In
STEP 1: Know The Racine/Kenosha Real Estate Market Well
The first (and most important step) is doing market research on your neighborhood. This step involves visiting various home marketing sites (Zillow, Eppraisal, Realtor, Redfin, etc). Then calling a real estate agent or two to see what your home is worth. Doing good research on these issues will allow you to come up with an accurate price for your house. It also helps you to avoid making certain selling mistakes that could cost you thousands!
If you don’t want to deal with trying to come up with a home value yourself… give us a call at 262-228-8505 and we’ll give you an honest valuation of what your house is worth on the retail market. And if you want to… we’ll make you a cash offer on your house to give you that option of a fast sale (we can close in as little as 15 days if you want to).
STEP 2: Assess the market
This step is almost like conducting market research. The difference is the focus on your neighborhood and comparable houses.
You and I both know that Racine/Kenosha is full of pockets of good and bad areas. You could be on one street where the houses are $130,000. Then another street over, a similar house is $86,000. It’s important that you’re comparing apples to apples. Look at the most recent SOLD prices, not the listed prices. Those are often too high and unrealistic numbers.
Are there lots of foreclosures in your neighborhood? That may drag your house price down.
STEP 3: Assess the house
As a seller, your house should be in top condition if you want to sell at a good price. Identify certain unique characteristics about it and emphasize them during the marketing. For example, in Racine/Kenosha, a house with an attached garage may be more attractive than a detached garage. Or a finished basement, will fetch more over an unfinished one.
Also, does your house need repairs? Does it need repainting inside or out? How is the condition of the roof (replaced within the last 10 years)? Is the landscaping in good shape? Is the house outdated at all? (you know, those popcorn ceilings ;-). All of these things can make the house more attractive or less attractive depending on the buyer… which changes the price they’re willing to pay.
After all of this… come up with an asking price for your Racine/Kenosha home that is fair… isn’t so high it’ll take you 12 months to sell the house… but is attractive so you get a frenzy of buyers who are ready to buy it right away!
STEP 4: Use Photos or Videos
Racine/Kenosha buyers obsess over media. Taking a walk-through video of the house and advertising it will enable you to reach a wider market. In fact, buyers consider videos to be more transparent than photos. This should not stop you from using photos though, since it is more affordable compared to the video.
So take some great pictures. Take a picture of every room in the house that helps show it off. Don’t be afraid to edit your photos. I’m not saying photoshop in furniture or change the color of the walls. Make sure everything is bright and visible. Lighting makes a world of a difference, but sometimes you’ve got a room where the light doesn’t come in well. Or, it’s a cloudy day so the natural light isn’t coming in.
Original iPhone PhotoEdited with iPhone by increasing exposure and decreasing shadows
Take a picture of the house from the outside at a few different angles… people want to see the house before they ever show up to see it. Having great pictures of your house online could be the difference between getting the right buyer quickly… and waiting months and months to sell.
STEP 5: Get Your House “Listed” On The Local Racine/Kenosha MLS And Market It
These days, you can find no or low fee real estate brokers to put your house on the local Racine/Kenosha MLS. It might cost you a just a few hundred bucks. This gets your house in front of all the real estate agents instantly. But, be ready to pay “buyers” agents a 2-3% buyers broker fee if you plan to have their support in helping you find a buyer.
Place ads in the Journal Times, signs on the roads, and hold an open house.
STEP 6: Coordinate With A Reputable Title Company or Real Estate Lawyer
Title companies in Wisconsin can often handle the entire closing process and help you through any questions or concerns you might have. If you don’t feel confident with understanding legal documentation, you may want to consider hiring a Real Estate Lawyer in Wisconsin to handle the documentation and to protect you in the sale of your home.
All This Sound Like A Lot Of Work To Sell Your Racine-Kenosha, WI House Yourself?
It can be, and it isn’t for everyone. That’s why we have real estate agents to help with the sale.
Many Racine & Kenosha house sellers think they’re saving money and time by marketing the house themselves… when in the end it could end up costing more time and money if you don’t educate yourself.
When selling your house yourself in Wisconsin here are some things to consider…
If you’re not a good marketer… or aren’t ready to spend time and money marketing your house… selling it yourself may not be your best option.
If you don’t do a good job preparing the house and the marketing materials… and working with buyers to really build the value of your house in their minds… you may actually sell the house for 3-8% less than if you get an experienced person to market the house for you.
Too many sellers never think about holding costs or opportunity costs… every month that your house doesn’t sell means another mortgage payment, tax payment, insurance, utilities, etc… What if it takes you 7 months to sell your house… Imagine the extra costs that are just bleeding out (not to mention taxes and insurance you paid during that time). So, if you were able to sell that house more quickly… would it make sense for you to provide a buyer a discounted price today so you can close quickly and move on? Something to think about.
If you’d rather not put up with the hassle of trying to sell your Racine/Kenosha house yourself… and would rather just sell it quickly for a fair price considering you won’t have to do any repairs, pay any commissions, fees, or closing costs …
… At Home Buyers actually buys local Racine & Kenosha, Wisconsin houses (and other cities in Wisconsin. Here’s a list of where we buy houses in Wisconsin
We’d love to make you a NO OBLIGATION and NO HASSLE cash offer on your house.
We can close quickly (in as little as 15 days if you wanted to)… which would save you money vs. trying to sell the house yourself with months of uncertainty.
Again, when we buy a Racine or Kenosha house, we do all repairs that are needed (we pay for it ourselves) so you don’t have to worry about that.
If you want to see what we can pay for your house, give us a call today at 262-228-8505or just fill out the quick simple form through the link below.
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