Sell

A Step-by-Step First Time Seller's Guide

Putting your home on the market can be a stressful process, especially when you don’t know what to expect. Fortunately, with the help of an experienced agent and this easy to follow guide, you can smoothly complete the process. Following these steps will help you prepare so you can get organized and sell your home for the best price possible.​​​​​​​

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Step 1: Understand Why You're Selling

What do you want to accomplish with the sale of your home? Do you want to make a certain amount of money that you can put toward a larger or nicer home? Do you need to sell it as soon as possible to facilitate a move to a new city or area? Once you understand your needs, you can better craft your offer. For example, if you need to sell quickly, you might want to price your home lower than if your goal is to make a certain profit margin. Make sure you convey these needs to your REALTOR once you choose one so he or she can adjust your selling price accordingly.

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Step 2: Determine Selling Price

Knowing how to price your home is one of the most important parts of the selling process. When you set a fair price in the beginning, you’ll get the most interest from other real estate agents and prospective buyers. Overpricing your home could lead to reduced interest, and underpricing leads to receiving less than what your home is worth. Working with a real estate agent is the best way to determine the right selling price for your home. An agent with experience can determine what other comparable homes are selling for, evaluate the current market, and may even suggest a home appraisal.

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Step 3: Start Preparations

If you’ve kept your home in showroom condition since you’ve lived in it, you’re in the minority of homeowners. Once you price your home, it’s time to start getting it ready to be shown to potential buyers. This includes getting rid of clutter, depersonalizing the space so that buyers can envision themselves in the space, making any small repairs, and doing a deep clean to make sure your home is in pristine condition.

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Step 4: Develop a Marketing Strategy

I will develop a marketing strategy that is perfect for advertising your home. This involves listing the home and then driving the right people to that listing through social media campaigns, agent-to-agent referrals, traditional media, or SEO advertising. My team creates a marketing campaign that aims to get the most possible traffic to your listing in the first three weeks after becoming a client.

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Step 5: Evaluate Offers

Receiving an offer is an exciting part of the process, but it doesn’t mean the journey is over. I will evaluate each offer and make sure the party making the offer is prequalified or pre-approved by a mortgage lender and that their offer is acceptable to you. If the offer is too low, you can make a counter-offer or offer other ways to bridge the gap, such as covering some or all of the closing costs, making repairs, adjusting the move-in date, or leaving some appliances or fixtures for the new buyer.

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Step 6: Accept an Offer

Once I deem the offer is acceptable, I will review the proposed contract to make sure it’s all in order and includes the necessary components such as deposit amount, down payment, financing, inspection rights and repair allowances, contingencies, settlement date, and a list of fees and who will pay them. When both parties have agreed to the term, a final contract will be prepared by your agent.

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Step 7: Get Ready to Close

You have accepted an offer and are now very close to the end of your selling journey. But first, you and the buyer must make a list of what needs to be done before closing. In some cases, your home may need to be formally inspected, surveyed, and appraised. In other cases, major or minor repairs will need to be made before the house can close. I will head up efforts to develop and execute this list, get each action item paid for by the correct party, and make sure everything is in order by the closing date. A few days before the closing date, I will call the company closing the transaction to make sure everything is ready to go. If you haven’t done so already, you also need to make arrangements to move out of the home so the new buyer can take possession.

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Step 8: Close

You’ve reached the last step in the seller’s process. When you close on a home you are selling, you are legally transferring ownership of the property to the new buyer. I will meet with the company closing the transaction to sign the final paperwork and go over any issues that have not yet been taken care of. During this time, you can also make plans with your REALTOR to handle final details such as canceling utilities, cable, and lawn or trash services, changing the name on accounts that the new owner is retaining and ensuring the new owner has instructions for all appliances that will remain in the home.

Congratulations!

Once you have sold your home, you’re free to take the next step on your journey. Whether this is relocating to a new city, moving into a larger home, or downsizing and enjoying your life as empty-nesters, knowing all your selling responsibilities have been taken care of will help you achieve peace of mind for your new path.

Testimonials

Matt T.

Matt T.

Lorraine supported me in my search for a summer home in the Flagstaff area. She was proactive, available, communicative, and very knowledgeable. She was always willing to FaceTime potential properties and worked with my less-th...
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Seller

Seller

Lorraine is an exceptional real estate agent. She knows the Munds Park area inside and out and was patient and helpful during the sales process. Her assistance went beyond helping us find and purchase our home more than a year ...
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Eric B.

Eric B.

We had a fantastic experience working with Lorraine. Not being from Munds Park and being several hours away we relied quite a bit on her expertise. Not only was she great at helping us find what we wanted but she was amazing at...
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Jeannine M.

Jeannine M.

Lorraine De La Cruz is a caring, sharp, knowledgeable REALTOR and my husband and I felt like she was our partner and advocate throughout the buying process. She was so responsive to our questions and always got back to us quick...
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Josh G.

Josh G.

My fiancée and I decided to move all the way from New York to Flagstaff, but our work schedules made it impossible for us to be there in person to see the homes. Lorraine gave us numerous virtual tours, along with all of the ot...
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Buyer

Buyer

Lorraine did a wonderful job for us. It was our second home and not there for the majority of the process. She went above and beyond to make sure the home showed well and negotiated with multiple offers. I felt that the process...
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Scott T.

Scott T.

Lorraine was incredibly helpful and made the process go very quickly and smoothly. Would recommend her to anyone looking to buy or sell a home. The challenges with the weather here made some things more difficult, but Lorraine ...
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Seller

Seller

Lorraine was wonderful to work with. Has lots of knowledge of the area we were in and the process went smoothly. Our home sold in the first week She’s very available at any time to answer questions or anything that may arise to...
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Buyer

Buyer

Lorraine is an awesome REALTOR and she supported us throughout the home-buying process, not just as a REALTOR but as a friend and Mentor, I have already recommended her to 3 of my friends who are looking to buy homes in Mundspa...
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Ga B.

Ga B.

Lorraine was a pleasure to deal with. She was given to us by another REALTOR and did a great job. Everything was done in a quick and timely manner and was very organized. We had a 21-day close and made it easy. Thanks, Lorraine...
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Marjorie G.

Marjorie G.

Lorraine is an excellent local REALTOR who goes above and beyond for her clients. She was excellent at working within our crazy schedules, and always followed up on communication. We really appreciated all of her help! Highly r...
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Having the right Real Estate Agent means having a professional Agent who is committed to assisting you in the purchase or sale of your home with the highest level of professionalism and knowledge. I do everything possible to take the stress out of the real estate transaction and create a positive experience.

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