Our 6-step process is as follows:
1. Meeting Of the Minds During the initial consultation we will meet with you to discuss the sales process and the services we offer. We will take a look at your home and come up with a winning strategy to maximize your profit. The approach we recommend will vary and is based on the current market conditions, your financial situation, the condition of the home, your preferences and any time limitations you may have. We will often suggest home improvements at this stage. In general, the carpet and paint should look new, the home should be “clean-clean” and the front and back of the home tidy to entice prospective purchaser to come inside. All clutter should be removed from inside and outside the home. Based on the planned improvement and comparable sales from the area we will come up with a marketing and pricing strategy attracting enough potential purchasers and get you an offer within the first 30 days.
Are Andresen: “pricing the home correctly from the start is really important. We will provide a list of comparable properties that includes active and pending homes as well as sold ones. The asking prices of active homes are often immaterial – what really matters is what comparable homes end up selling for.”
2. Make Ready 
During this period we will all be working together towards the date we set to put the home on the market. As the homeowner you will make repairs and upgrades, clean the inside and outside of the home and remove clutter. See our 11 Sure Ways to Dress Up Your Home For Sale and 9 Things You Must Do To sell Your Home. As your agent we help you with contractors as needed and will also arrange for professional pictures to be taken. We will also prepare marketing materials, order advertising and prepare for the first open house. Having your home staged professionally may be an option for some but staging can be expensive and may not give you a sufficiently higher price to be worth the extra cost (this will vary from home to home and will also be impacted by whether furniture will have to be rented or not.) One thing you can make sure of doing is making your home look great from the outside, if you think about it it will be the first thing a buyer will look at, it can determine lots of things, by simply working on your garden a bit more you can make a big change, and if you are interested this site can help you out giving a greater eye catching feeling to your house.
Liezel D’souza: “while some homeowners are willing and able to do many of the repairs and improvements themselves, most choose to hire contractors to help. We have a list of professionals that we use regularly and that we will share. If you live out of town we can also manage the whole process on your behalf (we have sold many homes without ever having met the seller face-to-face.)”
3. Sell, Sell, Sell At this point all the hard work in getting the home ready will pay off and your home will hit the market like a rocket! Your home will be marketed all over the place, it will be priced right and will show like a model. Purchasers will line up to see the home at showing appointments and at the open house. Upon seeing your home they will be wowed by its condition, features and great value.
Are Andresen: “while it may feel like you are living in a model home keep a positive attitude and be accommodating to people wanting to see your home. The more people see your home, the faster it will sell! That being said, you have the right to be treated with respect and to receive proper notice of showings. Every prospect should be accompanied by an agent or us – never let anyone unaccompanied into your home (open houses are a bit different – we will have covered this at our initial meeting.)”
4. The Art of Negotiating 
One of the steps prior to listing the home was to come up with a realistic and attractive asking price. By pricing the home right we should have received an acceptable offer within 30 days of the home going on the market. If we did really well we will have multiple offers and will use those to negotiate better terms and conditions. While it usually comes down to price in the end, other negotiable items can influence the price. Flexibility on terms like the closing date, inspections and appraisals etc may be important to one or both parties.
Are Andresen: “Don’t be offended by an initial low offer. Many buyer agents routinely advice their clients to bid 10% below asking price to “test the waters.” It is the purchasers’ way to make sure that they are not missing out on a low price by a motivated seller. Just make a counter – even if it is full price. Offers 30% below asking price with incorrect property address and sloppily filled out information may not warrant your attention though…”
5. Meeting Your Obligations After accepting an offer (and therefore having a ratified contract), things will start to move quickly. The typical time from ratification until you need to be out of the home (closing/settlement) is 30-45 days. Apart from you getting your home packed and ready to move, there are other obligations. During this period your home will be visited by various professionals doing various inspections(home inspection, chimney inspection etc), the appraisal, termite inspection and then the final walk-through for the purchaser before closing.
Liezel D’souza: “Keep in mind that the sales price initially negotiated and agreed to may not be the final sales price. There are various contingencies between contract signing and the closing date that may allow the purchaser to attempt to renegotiate the terms of the contract. That includes the price. Apart from the appraisal and home inspection, there could be other items and issues that would warrant a further price reduction or credit.”
6. Seal the Deal After you have gone through all the preparations to get the home ready and (hopefully) survived the inspections with your sales price intact, it is time to celebrate! Seeing happy seller clients hand over the keys to a thrilled purchaser is one of the most rewarding parts of our job. The purchaser is looking forward to a new life in their new home and the seller is moving on to another and new phase of their life.
Are Andresen: Just because your home is sold doesn’t mean you have to leave the home. We often negotiate something called a post settlement occupancy agreement where the old owner rents back the home from the new owner for a short time period (1-60 days typically.) This allows the seller to make new living arrangements (move, rent or purchase a new home) with the piece of mind that the old home has been sold.
When working with Soldsense you will appreciate the enthusiasm and experience we share with all our clients. Ready to get started on selling your home? Please contact us using the form below.