Selling your home in Philadelphia is a very different process from buying your first-home. As a seller, you’ll have more control in the process, but there are smart tips to follow to ensure a smooth process, a faster sale, and the best price.
1. Know the best time to sell your home in Philadelphia
Home supply and demand ratio determines if it’s a seller’s market, buyer’s market, or balanced market.
If you have the flexibility to choose when you sell, chose a seller’s market, which occurs when there are more buyers searching for homes than available inventory. In the greater Philadelphia area, this is typically during the warmer months—May through August—and can lead to multiple offers that can exceed the list price.
Like the national market, May is the best month of the year to sell your home in Philadelphia. Homes listed at this time sold faster and for up to 10% more than the yearly average, according to local sales data.
2. Determine your next move
If you want to purchase another home, check with your lender to see if your pre-approval is contingent on the sale of your existing home. Selling and buying simultaneously requires stealth coordination so know your options in advance.
3. Hire a REALTOR®
Selling a home can be complex so you want to be represented by a licensed professional. Unlike agents, REALTOR®s are members of the National Association of REALTOR®s and are committed to the highest ethical and professional standards. They will develop a comprehensive marketing plan and guide you every step of the way to ensure a smooth process, a faster sale, and the best price.
4. Prepare your home for sale
Properly preparing your home for sale can put thousands of dollars in your pocket and save valuable time, if your home sells faster and for more money. You want buyers to fall in love with your home, so getting it move-in ready will appeal to the broadest range of potential buyers.
Opting for a home inspection will enable you to correct any issues that a buyer’s inspector will find and can greatly decrease the chance that a deal may terminate due to an inspection contingency.
Making low-cost home improvements can greatly increase your return. Your REALTOR® can recommend specific things for your home, including:
- Painting rooms a neutral color
- Professionally cleaning floors and carpets
- Replacing outdated hardware on kitchen and bath cabinetry
- Replacing outdated light fixtures
5. Price your home competitively
The primary reason a home doesn’t sell is because it’s priced too high. Since single-source online estimates may be inaccurate, your REALTOR® will use various tools, including a comparative market analysis (CMA), a side-by-side analysis of like homes, to accurately establish the current market value.
6. Stage your home to sell
Decluttering and depersonalizing your space is critically important. Too much clutter makes a room feel small with lack of storage, while too many personal photos makes it hard for buyers to picture themselves in the home. They want to visualize their own families in the space—not yours.
If you have a pet, remove the pet during showings, if you can. Repair pet damage, and clear away your pets’ toys.
If you need assistance staging your home, your REALTOR® can recommend a staging expert.
7. Watch for contingencies
Accepting an offer gets you one step closer to closing, but there are other milestones to consider before closing.
Inspection: If you didn’t use an inspector prior to listing, the buyer’s inspector could uncover major issues that could cause the buyer to walk away. Be prepared to negotiate after the inspection unless you added into your contract that the inspection is for information purposes only.
Mortgage: The buyer’s lender can decide there’s too much risk in financing the home if they uncover things like missed credit card payments, new debt, and a recent change in employment.
Appraisal: If buyer’s lender will order an appraisal to ensure the home value is equivalent to the purchase price. If the home is valued below, the buyer will have to pay the difference in cash or walk away.
8. Know your closing costs and net proceeds
Upon receipt of an offer, your REALTOR® can give you an estimate of closing costs, which may include transfer taxes, commission for the buyer and seller agents, and concessions, eg, helping the buyer with closing costs.
With your current mortgage pay-off balance, you can also receive your estimated seller net proceeds in advance of closing.
Ready to sell your Philadelphia home?