Selling a home can be stressful and challenging. It is one of the most significant decisions you’ll ever make. Maybe you’ve been through the process before and have an idea of what to expect, or perhaps this is your first time selling a home and you’re turning to the web for guidance. Whatever stage you are at, you can benefit from these home-selling tips from Marinelli Real Estate. In this ultimate guide, we’ll walk you through the most important considerations for home sellers. Understanding the home-selling process and Glenmoor’s local real estate market is essential to navigating this journey. Having Anthony, Chuck and Nicole to interpret the ‘compass’ readings will doubtless assuage any client’s doubts or concerns.

The first step to selling your home is mentally and emotionally preparing yourself. Selling a home is a significant life decision, and it can be challenging to part with a house, especially when good memories are attached to it. While selling a home can prove to be daunting, it’s important to remember to go into this with a positive attitude. Manifesting a great outcome through the process feels much better than the alternative.

Consider breaking the home-selling process into manageable tasks with a timeline that suits your lifestyle. Focusing on each task independently makes the entire process feel much more doable. The Marinelli Team will general-manage the entire preparation process or assistant-manage for their hands-on sellers.

The first question most home sellers ask is, “how much value is my home worth?” Remember that assessing the price of a home is a complex process. Websites that estimate the value of homes in your area use algorithms that consider several factors, including the age of the home, its location and size, and market trends in the surrounding neighborhood, but you must be forewarned that the valuation may not be accurate.

Algorithms the aggregators use do not forecast where the market is headed. Only the most experienced agents can do that. And that is crucial. Agents who are ‘in the know’ are privy to pending sales and micro-markets in their local area of expertise. Using their ‘crystal ball’ to reveal where values are likely headed 30 to 60 days out once these properties become public knowledge is extremely helpful.

An experienced real estate agent will help you determine your home's listing price. While a simple search for Glenmoor real estate can lead you to a wealth of information on sales in your neighborhood, it won’t provide you with the invaluable knowledge that a great agent will have. Realtors Anthony Marinelli, Nicole Herrmann, and Chuck Herrmann know the Glenmoor area and can provide you with accurate information to choose a listing price that will elicit the best market reaction to your home.

Before selling your home, you should conduct a thorough cleaning. As another included value added service Marinelli Real Estate hires a professional team of cleaners that make their listings sparkle. They focus on spaces you would usually overlook, such as baseboards, walls and ceilings. Highly-trafficked areas, such as living rooms, bathrooms, and kitchens may require extra attention. Removing every spot and blemish to make your home look fresh and clean is an understatement. Because, yes! They even do windows and blinds. Not to mention, inside cabinets, drawers, refrigerators, stoves and dishwashers.

After a deep clean, consider decluttering and depersonalizing your home. You want to ensure your home is a blank slate where buyers can visualize themselves living there. Put away personal belongings, such as photographs, bills, and other items. The Marinelli Team makes specific recommendations to organize and declutter counter spaces. Packing away small appliances like toasters and microwaves creates a sense of spaciousness that most buyers are hoping for in a kitchen. When prospective buyers walk in they should be daydreaming about what it would feel like to live in your beautiful house. Something as simple as a family photo can reveal that you live there and wake them from their reverie. The more time a buyer can spend imagining themselves living in your house the closer to writing an offer they will be.

Be sure to tend to your home’s exterior and lawn as much as you would the interior. An excellent curb appeal will attract more buyer interest and create a positive impression before they ever cross the threshold. It doesn’t cost much for hedges to be neatly trimmed, mulch freshened up, some flowers to be planted and grass cut. The effect however will be great.

Think about how long you’ve been in your home. Are there any areas that need to be fixed or renovated? While you may be used to living with squeaky floors or a dripping faucet, you should ask yourself if a potential buyer would view these as defects. Would they detract from the beauty of your home or distract from all of the positives? If so, the time to take care of those repairs is before inspections.

Some homeowners have more serious considerations when it comes to repairs. The age and efficiency of the HVAC system and the condition of the roofing material can raise concerns in potential buyers. Before you put your home on the market, The Marinelli Real Estate team suggests hiring a home inspector to reveal any problematic areas. The team will be there during the inspections and help prioritize any work recommended and at the same time share vetted contractors or handyman services for those repairs.

If you wish to make improvements to your home the cost of any upgrades will be your first concern. It’s one thing to consider painting or flooring work and another to jump into a kitchen or bathroom remodel. Again, this is where a seasoned real estate agent can come to your aid. The Marinelli Real Estate Team can help you navigate your home’s upgrade or improvement needs offering solid advice and recommendations on cost-effective practices. They also have strong connections to contractors and other service professionals who work in the Glenmoor real estate market.

And so you won’t have to come ‘out of pocket’ for improvements or repairs, Marinelli Real Estate has cash available for their clients to use through Compass Concierge. No need to sell stock and add to your tax burden. No need to deplete the rainy day fund. Use the money at no interest and return the same amount at close of escrow.

Staging is the term used to describe the creative presentation of your home to garner maximum appeal. As another included value added service, Marinelli Real Estate hires professional stagers/ interior design professionals to make sure nothing holds your home back from realizing the best possible market reaction. The key to successful staging is accentuating your home’s best features and minimizing the focus on non-aesthetically pleasing areas.

Before the term staging was in use in the late 80’s, Marinelli Real Estate used ‘Preparing the Home for Market’. Staging being more concise caught on. Anthony, Nicole and Chuck have been ahead of the curve with the quality of their staging ever since.

If you plan on marketing your home while living there, a great stager can make the most of it. At times, simply rearranging furniture and adding tasteful decor they can draw out the stunning and attractive home you’ve been living in. We often hear… “It looks so great we want to stay!”

Market conditions can change rapidly from one quarter to another. Factors such as interest rates, inventory and housing demand can cause Glenmoor real estate, or Ardenwood real estate and Niles real estate, market to shift in a matter of months. Your agent should manage your expectations so you will be able to understand what negotiations with buyers and their agents will look like. A highly-qualified real estate agent knows the ins and outs of negotiations and will be able to advocate for you to ensure you accept a top-dollar offer that meets your personal wants and needs. With over 1400 closed transactions under his belt, Anthony Marinelli is a well known negotiator. Simply having his name on the sign affects the outcome due to the stellar reputation he has earned for over 3 decades.

It’s probably clear by now that a trusted, experienced real estate agent is indispensable when selling a home. An agent will answer any questions, help you navigate the market, list your home, and take over the most stressful parts, such as negotiating with interested buyers and making sure the buyers live up to their accepted contract down to the last detail.

If you want to sell your home, consider contacting Anthony, Nicole, or Chuck at Marinelli Real Estate. They have proven sales experience and have the skills and knowledge to help you make informed decisions throughout the home-selling process. Contact them today to get started!