Sell House Fast (Everything You Need To Know)

Sometimes, you simply find yourself in a situation that means you need to sell your house fast. Whether it’s an ugly divorce that has resulted in selling the home or an awesome job promotion, you can’t help but feel stuck as you dive deep into the new world of real estate. Don’t feel overwhelmed. This blog will tell you everything that you need to know to sell your house fast, including all the options that you have. 

How To Sell Your House Fast Without A Realtor

Selling your home without a realtor is always an option. The market is packed with opportunities to unload your home in under a month. Some let you sell your house in five days! 

iBuyers Purchase Houses For Cash

The I in “iBuyer” stands for instant. These buyers will offer you a cash offer for your home, allowing you to unload your house as quickly as possible. They are notorious for fast purchases, and often offer a competitive price that is comparative to fair market value. Most people that want to sell their home fast prefer to take this route instead of dealing with the real estate market or potential cash home buyers. 

There are several good and bad things about working with an iBuyer that pays cash for houses. They will buy houses in both a hot market and a slow market, let you choose your closing date, and you won’t have to make repairs. Homeowners will not have to deal with showing the house or preparing the house to be sold. Instead, they can simply sell it as is. These companies offer a convenience that traditional realtors simply cannot compete with. 

On the downside, iBuyers will only offer a cash price. You won’t be able to negotiate a higher price and could wind up making less money off of your home than if you worked with a traditional real estate agent. Some iBuyers are known for charging high price tags for repairs that take a large chunk out of earnings. It’s important to research iBuyers before doing business with them. 

It’s important to note that iBuyers all work a little differently. For example, certain iBuyers only purchase homes in specific markets. Others are known for offering significantly less than the sales price would be on the market. There are certain criteria that major iBuyers, such as Offerpad and Opendoor, look at before purchasing a house. Things that you need to consider when working with an iBuyer include: 

• Reputation
• Reviews from other sellers that have previously worked with them
• How much do they pay for the closing costs
• Fees
• Markets they serve
• Timeline
• Do they provide assistance with moving costs
• Are they known for charging high prices for repairs?
• Type of property they will buy
• Is the cash offer a fair price given the current situation of the housing market

Sell Your House For Cash

Accepting a cash offer is significantly quicker than working with a buyer that has to obtain financing. You will not have to wait for mortgage underwriting when selling to cash buyers. As a homeowner, you won’t have to worry about their financing not going through or them not being able to find financing. These are the main benefits that homeowners love about working with cash home buyers. 

The major downside to working with cash buyers that are not iBuyers that purchase homes with cash is that they tend to lowball people. They can be a bit demanding and may think that they have the right to be because they are paying with cash. However, if you’re in a hurry to sell your home, it might be worth it to take a slightly lower offer. 

For Sale By Owner

Homeowners that have a friend or family member interested in buying their home can sell it quickly without assistance. Most homes that are sold by the owner are on the market for approximately three weeks when they are sold to someone the owner doesn’t know. The average time on the market when they are sold to someone the owner does know is zero. 

One major downside to selling your own house is that you do not have the same experience that a professional real estate agent does. Friends and family members might expect a price reduction or refuse to pay the sale price. Because of that, homes that are sold by the owner are likely to sell for significantly less. 

If you do plan to sell your home yourself, keep reading to learn some great tips to help you sell your home fast! 

Offer Incentives

Homeowners that know they are going to have a difficult time selling their homes can speed up the selling process by offering incentives for their homes. Some great things that potential buyers will appreciate include: 

• Repair credits
• Paying closing costs
• Solar power
• Include the appliances

You can even recoup a partial cost of these by upping the sales price slightly. If you’re considering selling your home in a slow market, it’s important to consider what home buyers are interested in when deciding which incentives to offer. 

How To Sell Your House Fast With A Realtor

If you want to sell your house fast, you’re not limited to only using an iBuyer. Finding a top notch real estate agent is another great way to get your home off the market. Experienced real estate agents can stage beautiful photos, write compelling listings, and are capable of selling a home in a few weeks. 

Pros Vs. Cons Of Using A Real Estate Agent

There are several pros and cons to working with a realtor. The key advantages of working with a top notch real estate agent include: 

• Potentially make more money when you sell
• Little work involved on your part
• You don’t have to deal with negotiations
• Agents can provide wonderful advice to jack up the price tag
• Know how to reach out to potential buyers

It’s important to keep the disadvantages in mind when deciding whether to work with a realtor as well. Some of the major downsides of working with a professional real estate agent are:

• It can take longer to sell your house
• You’re suddenly on their timeline
• You have to show your house
• Repairs will be needed
• Real estate agent commissions (some of the best real estate agents charge up to 10% in real estate commissions)
• Realtors are known for hidden fees
• Difficult to determine a price, selling date, and other critical details until the sale happens

Most homeowners won’t realize that hiring a real estate agent was not the best decision to sell their home fast until they are already involved in the process. Make sure that you take the time to carefully consider whether working with a real estate agent is for you before signing the paperwork. 

Things To Fix Before Selling Your House

If you’re planning on selling your home, there are key things you should fix beforehand. When working with a real estate agent, these things can help you up the price. Homeowners that want to sell their house fast to an iBuyer will discover that they have to pay less for repairs.

Declutter and Clean

Decluttering and giving your house a good scrub can work in your favor regardless of who you are selling it to. An iBuyer has someone perform an inspection before purchasing a house, so it’s important that they have a good impression. Likewise, it’s critical that buyers viewing the home are able to picture their own things in the house, and that they don’t walk away because it needs deep cleaned. Make sure that you do these things: 

• Clean the tops of ceiling fans
• Scrub the baseboards
• Wipe off lightswitches
• Clean out closets, the basement, the attic, and other storage areas (rent a storage unit if you need to.)
• Declutter personal belongings, such as family portraits, if working with a real estate agent (it helps buyers picture their own things in the home) 
• Organize all closets to show buyers how much storage space there is if working with a real estate agent 
• Clean the carpets and rugs
• Don’t forget to clean the windows and windowsills

Quick Fixes

There are quite a few small repairs that you can do around the house that most people won’t notice. However, if you don’t do them, buyers are sure to notice. Here are some small repairs that you can easily complete in a weekend: 

• Fix loose tiles
• Screw in loose screws on doorknobs, doors, etc. 
• Touch up the paint
• Repair leaky plumbing fixtures

Curb Appeal

Making sure that the exterior of your home looks nice is a must if you’re not working with an iBuyer. Most buyers decide whether they are interested in a home within the first thirty seconds of seeing it and that thirty seconds is spent walking to the door. Here are some great ways you can increase the curb appeal of your home: 

• Power wash siding
• A fresh coat of paint on the house
• Paint the porch
• Put curb numbers in front of your house
• Plant flowers and/or shrubs
• De-clutter the porch
• Clean up the yard
• Mow the grass
• Paint the front door
• Clean the doorknobs

After you’ve finished landscaping and prepping the exterior of your home, walk to the curb. Take a good look at your house from the point of view of a buyer. Do the gutters need to be cleaned? Does it look nice and neat? These are the things that will run through a buyer’s mind when they first arrive at your house. 

Make Major Repairs

There are some things that will be costly to fix, such as a broken HVAC system. However, if you don’t fix them an iBuyer will charge you repair costs for them. You’ll often have to deduct the price of the repair from the overall price tag when working with a real estate agent as well.

Those repair costs can be estimated as being much higher than it costs to make the repair yourself. You can make more money by fixing furnaces, appliances, broken central air units, and other major fixes before listing your home. 

What Not To Fix When Selling Your Home

There are plenty of things that homeowners should fix before selling their homes. It’s common knowledge that the home should look nice, but this often leaves the impression that the home has to be flawless, and it certainly does not. Homeowners can actually save money and still sell their homes at the asking price by not fixing certain things. 

Before fixing something, ask yourself if it’s a major repair. Then, determine whether you are going to recoup the costs. If you’re not going to recoup the costs, carefully consider whether it will impact the price of the home. Some common things that homeowners don’t actually need to fix include: 

• Cracked sidewalks
• Cracked driveways
• Small roof repairs
• Expensive renovations for vanity
• Light fixtures (this only makes sense if lights are extremely outdated) 
• Small projects that will require hiring an expensive professional
• Avoid anything that could turn into a partial remodel

Knowing what to fix, and what not to fix when selling your home, is a great way to make sure that you get the highest return on investment. 

In Conclusion

Here at Cyber Homes, we run across quite a few situations that call for a fast house sale. Whether you have rental properties and are tired of bad tenants, can’t keep up with the mortgage payments, or are moving across the country, we can help you. We specialize in purchasing houses and investment properties of all kinds. If we can’t provide assistance, we always go above and beyond to point you in the right direction.

Contact us today to learn how we can help you sell your house fast or browse the rest of our blogs to learn everything you need to know about selling a home, avoiding foreclosure, and more!