Home Sellers have three primary thoughts in their head when they call me to talk about listing their homes. This is true for the Iowa City area where I help sellers and is probably true for sellers everywhere.
Click to view Single Property Website for a listing in North Liberty
1. How much will you get for you home?
2. How much will it cost you to sell your home?
3. How long will it take to sell?
I can talk all day long about my awesome marketing plan and how I leverage the Internet to give listings more and better exposure, but ultimately the only thing sellers care about are these three things. After coming to this realization at a listing appointment this week I decided it’s time I put in writing how exactly I will address these questions when I list your home for sale in the Iowa City area.
How Much Will You Get for Your Home?
To find out how much your house is worth we start with the trusted market analysis. That gives us somewhere to start. It doesn’t answer the question. What it doesn’t do is factor in what the market is doing right now, or the make up and desirability of your specific neighborhood. Those are both things the agent you decide to work with needs to know. My thorough research of neighborhoods is one of the things that sets me apart from the rest. I have a pulse on the Iowa City real estate market in general and when it comes to neighborhoods I look at all facets that will influence the sale of your home.
Is it a large house in a neighborhood with lots of apartments or zero lots? That will have a negative impact on price. Is it a small house surrounded by bigger homes? That will have a positive impact on price. Then there are the obvious positive benefits of having a house in a desirable school district. The list goes on, but you get the idea. Pricing your home right from the start is critical to how quickly your house will sell. I know that and put A LOT of research into providing you with the information you need to get it right from the get go.
How Much Will it Cost You to Sell Your Home?
There are three main components to calculate closing costs for sellers:
1. Abstract Updating, recording fees, etc
2. Real Estate Commission to the listing agent
3. Real Estate Taxes
It’s possible to estimate these costs I typically bring along a Closing Sheet for Sellers at listing appointments.
Here’s a link to a post breaking down the closing costs for sellers when they sell a home in the Iowa City area.
How Long Will it Take to Sell Your Home?
This question is not as easy to answer as the other two. It depends on a number of things. One of those things is your own motivation. If you’re committed to getting a higher price you might wait longer for the right buyer to come along. To move quickly you will need to position your house to “beat the competition.” In other words, list it at or slightly lower than other similar homes on the market. Buyers have lots of resources to research homes. They’re not going to pay more for your house when there are others similar on the market that cost less. As I mentioned in a previous paragraph, pricing your home right is a really important first step in getting your home sold!
That said, well priced homes will take longer to sell if they’re not marketed properly. This is where my awesome marketing plan comes in. Getting your house in front of as many buyers as possible is the name of the game. Listing it on the Iowa City MLS is only part of the equation. There are A LOT of houses and condos for buyers to view online. Yours needs to pop up and be noticed. As the the tech savviest Realtor in town I can confidently say that I know how to make houses stand out and use all the tools the Internet has to offer. With 94% of buyers online at the last count, the chances of your home not being seen does not come up. Your house will be seen and you will get showings. That still doesn’t answer how long it will take to sell, but assuming it’s in good shape and priced right it definitely won’t take long!
Ready to sell your home in Iowa City, Coralville or North Liberty?
Contact me for a Free Market Analysis, or better yet call me at 319-400-0268. Let’s talk about getting your home sold this Spring!
