Every year, about 40 million Americans move.
Whether you’re switching neighborhoods, counties, cities, states, or even countries, there are a number of reasons people move. Some move because they need better neighborhoods that fit a certain social status; others move because of work; others move to be closer to family.
Regardless of your reason, there are things you need to take care of first. One such thing is your house.
If you’re a homeowner, you might need to sell it first. In this article, we’re telling you how to sell your home and get ready to move.
Read on!
Contents
Develop a Schedule
It’s one thing to just sell a house. It’s quite a different thing to sell it, then move.
These are two events happening in succession, so you need to be adequately prepared for that. Although you can never really tell how long a house will take to sell, you can work with an estimate and develop a guiding schedule.
Ideally, you want to give yourself about 2 months, since a house typically takes about a month to sell.
Your schedule should also account for the moving part. As you’re preparing your current home for the market, you should be preparing the home you’re moving into for a move-in. You don’t want to sell your home only to find that you’ve nowhere to go.
Prepare Your Home for the Market
Before you can move, you need your current house to find a buyer. This can be easy or it can be super-hard. A lot will depend on how well you prep the property for sale.
Selling As-Is or Fixing It Up?
First, decide whether you want to sell as-is or you want to fix it up first.
Selling as-is might be ideal in a situation where you’re unable to move out of the house before putting it on the market. Or when you don’t have the money to do the necessary fixes.
On the downside, selling as-is might work against you, especially if you’re working on a fixed timeline. Unless your house is relatively well-maintained, it might take a longer time to find a buyer.
What most sellers do is fix up the home before selling it. Fixed-up homes not only sell fast but also sell for more money.
Regardless of the way you want to go, one of your biggest selling points will be this: price. You need to master the science of pricing your home to sell fast.
If your price is above what other similar properties in the area are going for, it can take longer to find an interested buyer. If the price is on par with what the market is asking, you might sell it quickly, but that will largely depend on the demand for houses in the area.
If you’re really looking to sell quickly because time isn’t on your side and the demand for houses in the area isn’t that good, it might be in your best interest to slightly underprice the property. Most buyers won’t skip an opportunity to get a discount, even if it’s a few thousand dollars.
Find a Real Estate Agent
Second, you need to decide whether to hire a real estate agent or sell the house on your own (For sale by owner).
Our advice?
Hire a real estate agent.
Remember your goal is to sell and get ready to move. So, the assumption is you’re working on a tight timeframe. If that’s the case, don’t hesitate to hire a seller’s agent.
Yes, you’ll pay a commission for their services, but the home will sell faster and possibly at a higher price.
Your agent will advise you on the repairs you need to make to the home. They will use their marketing skills to give the property the exposure it needs to sell quickly.
Once you’ve found an interested buyer and the closing process has started, it’s time to focus on the next phase: getting ready to move.
How to Get Ready to Move
As you were preparing to sell the house, you were also preparing most of your belongings for the move. If you needed to move out of the house before selling – probably to allow for staging – your belongings are likely in self-storage.
Either way, moving shouldn’t be a challenging process, unless you intend on doing it on your own – which you shouldn’t. The smart thing to do is hire professional movers.
These movers take almost every moving-related task off your hands. You can choose to sit and watch, but you might want to get involved and see how the process is moving. There are also some items you might want to pack yourself, such as your intimate clothes, jewelry, and other personal valuables.
The location of your new home will affect your moving plan in a couple of ways.
If you’re moving to a nearby neighborhood, for example, you can complete the move in one day. However, if you’re moving to a distant city or state, the move can take two or more days.
If it’s the latter, you don’t have to wait and follow your movers. They’re professionals. They’ll get your belongings to your new home without any supervision.
It’s wise to leave earlier so you can have enough time to prepare the property for a move-in. You can use the extra time to set up utility services such as home internet.
Get Ready to Move Without Any Headaches
Moving is part of the lives of most people in the U.S. Sooner or later you’ll need to relocate. If that time has already come, use this guide to sell your house and get ready to move.
Keep reading our blog for more helpful tips.