Lots of homeowners have a “sell my house fast” situation. The range of reasons why can vary greatly. A “sell my house fast” situation might be a job in another state that starts next week, you’re behind on your mortgage, or maybe you have to relocate somewhere else to be with family. It’s different for everyone.
For “all” sellers in a “sell my house fast” situation, selling fast is beneficial. It means you can move on with your life and not have to worry about it.
By going the “sell my house fast” route, you increase your chances of actually selling it very fast. That’s because you’re going to get a cash offer for your property. You’re completely bypassing the whole “showing”, “negotiating price”, and “waiting for mortgage approval/inspecting” rigmarole that “many” sellers have to deal with.
Common Misconceptions About Selling a House Fast
When on the surface, many homeowners believe that the adage “sell my house fast” necessarily means at a lower price. This absolutely nixes quick sales as an option for a lot of sellers because, why on earth would they want to relinquish their house for any less value than it deserves? For the vast majority of quick sales, the seller often does get a price that is very much in the ballpark. In a hot real estate market where there are SEVERAL BUYERS available, a seller may even attract MORE THAN ONE CASH OFFER if they so choose to sell their house for cash quickly.
In some of these cases where the property is located in a convenient or desirable location, investors are absolutely willing to pay a small service fee on top of a quick, cash payment for the house. This means that the seller is given their full amount of money (no ongoing mortgage payments to make) while also being able to take more time to LOOK and PREPARE for a new house that is not their own. There are other small benefits to a fast sale, such as not having to make repairs.
And that has been the idea with this statement: that we want you, the reader who wants to make the best financial decision possible, to have more autonomy within their own particular experience and situation as a homeowner in America.
Understanding the Need to Sell Your House Fast
Various life changes may cause homeowners to need to sell their house fast.
Job relocation is a broad term, but maybe there is an unexpected job offer that you just can’t pass up—so it’s off to the new city or state you go. Whatever the case may be, you need a solution to sell a house fast. All of a sudden, this move became four times as stressful. Now, you deal with moving woes on top of finding a way to sell a house fast that will most definitely not bring in as much money as it would have under “normal” circumstances.
There are also financial difficulties. Things happen. People lose their jobs. Life gets in the way, and you have to pay for medical expenses you never saw coming. Whatever the case may be, maybe you can’t pay for your mortgage this time around. This “got to sell my house fast” ordeal can be incredibly taxing. It’s one thing to prevent going down further in terms of what you have to pay out, but it’s another to even part ways with a home that you saw your life in. Have to uproot can be tough. Homeowners may be faced with scraping up whatever is left of their lives and salvage what they can, financially.
Sell a house fast situations may happen if you have to split. Cut things off. The conversation about what is to come of having to sell a house from a divorce is not the easiest to have; especially since this was a place that you built with this person. The place where you’ve had the most amazing and in-love holiday.
The Benefits of Selling Your Home Quickly
Those who sell their house quickly remove a big stressor from their life. The traditional process of selling a house most likely includes countless negotiations back and forth, open houses, photos of the home, and days, weeks, and months waiting around until the right person decides to buy the house. Skipping all these steps alleviates the mental burden from the seller so they can quickly move on to their next chapter in life. The benefit of this is that there is no looming, uncertain selling day for several months; instead, the seller knows right away when they will get the property off their hands. For many, like people who are moving soon, those who had a family member pass away, etc, lifting one more “thing” off their chest might be the best course of action.
Secondly, the financial aspect of getting a large sum of money is undoubtedly helpful. There are infinite reasons why someone might suddenly find themselves in a bind for some extra money, which is where selling their house in 5 days can come in handy. A seller could quickly pay off a large fee or get the down payment they need for another house or similar expensive buy.
Given this, there might be some big concerns that would need to be handled somewhat swiftly. Ideally, everything would happen ideally over one day. Many times, that will not be the case. Instead, something might cause the seller to have to take out their wallet again, potentially once more putting the seller in a position where they would have to pay several thousand dollars. After all, who would not want access to a house that is not selling after a while? Thirdly, expensive house repairs are so commonly asked for these days that a seller may have no other option than to pay out on some very big fees just to get the place sold. Even the nicer homes might have to cough up a fair price. When entertaining this third point, it becomes very, very worrying. Many homes have something a little “off” about them. For example, maybe a certain part of the house needs to be improved, like the roof, HVAC, etc. With the competitive home buyer’s market, buyers will probably have already “scoped out” the other homes for sale, meaning that even the suggestions of “My house has bad plumbing, but do not worry, “outside help might be struggling. Talk about your quick house sale “for lack of home renovations.” This point is great for most people who just want to get their house sold (dishonest home buyer point).
Lastly, selling a house without marketing sounds enticing! Keeping all aspects of the house closed off to the public feels very satisfying to the worried homeowner. What is great about a sale here is that the seller probably will not have to have their dirty laundry aired out to the buyer.”
Exploring Cash Offers for Sale
A cash offer for sale is just that — an offer from a buyer to purchase a property outright. Cash offers are different from traditional sales, where the buyer likely must get a mortgage or other financing to buy the new house.
- Speed of sale. Cash transactions are often much quicker and easier than traditional sales. After all, the first buyer/offerer already has all of the cash and does not need the bank’s say-so on whether they get a loan.
- Certainty of close. Yes, there is all the paperwork, but the buyer will know that they will be able to purchase without risking the bank or the lender saying no.
- Increased competition in slower markets. All-cash offers, while rare, may help homes sell much faster than traditional offers. This is helpful because sellers who may need money fast can get it much faster than waiting on the banks.
How to Sell Your House Fast
Pricing your home competitively is one of the most critical steps to selling your house fast. Look at what comparable homes in your area are selling for and price your home based on that. The price you set on your home should be reflective of the market. If you list your home at a price that 88% of the market would pay, you are lawfully going to attract more buyers. That could lead to receiving offers on your home promptly. Pricing too high will likely make your home unattractive to buyers. Maybe you price your home too low, which could lead to a net loss on your home sale. Perhaps creating a bidding war is a strategy that you want to implement; if so, slightly underprice your home to create a sense of urgency. You want to sell your home fast, so researching something such as pricing should be at the forefront of things to research.
An old trick in the book that works. If you want to sell your house fast, improve its curb appeal. It’s going to be the first impression that will set the tone for the rest of the buyers’ viewing. Address the exterior of your front home the same way you would address the inside of your house. Clear the way to your doorway, keep it clean, nothing should distract the buyer from seeing their new home. Add a welcoming mat. Use lighting. A fresh coat of paint goes a long way. Landscaping is an affordable upgrade that makes a big difference, as well as maintenance and cleaning. Clearing your driveway will make your home look much larger. Your front door should be well presented. You want buyers to envision themselves living in your house. If they drive by your house or view images online and they are immediately drawn, then your exterior has successfully done its job. You are bound to receive offers more quickly. First-time home buyers are more likely to buy a home based on looks.
Work with real estate investors who buy properties with cash. This is a solid strategy that can help everyone reading this article sell his/her home fast. The beauty of selling to an investor is that they have cash on hand. With the availability of cash, investors or “cash buyers” can close very quickly. Certain companies boast that they can close in as little as seven days. Investors are buying homes that are not in need of a ton of repairs (if any) and can rent, sell, or lease the property for a profit. They are primarily looking for homes that they can close on quickly and easily, allowing you to move on to your new home and life. It will streamline your home selling experience, allow you to negotiate and only show your home once, and on average reduce your days on the market when you sell your house. It’s an extremely appealing offer to home sellers who have better things to do than spend their time, money, and effort on a traditional sale.
Many homeowners in today’s fast-paced real estate market may need to sell their houses quickly for things like job relocations, financial changes, and personal circumstances among other reasons. This article explains several things about how to do that, and spoiler alert: Getting a cash offer is one of them. That’s right; there are ways to sell your house other than the traditional, and often polled out, process that has you ready to relocate perhaps before you’re even ready to do so.
Speaking of the traditional process of selling, one of the main benefits of going the route of the cash offer is that you would not have to go through the traditional process. The way that many steps (including but not limited to inspections, appraisals, and loan approval) are skipped is sort of the point. And, in fact, this is one of the things that make this option so appealing: since you can skip those steps, you can also get to “skipping on to the next chapter” of your life, quickly.
This is also one of the things that can make negotiating a cash offer such a smooth process since financing (or rather, the lack or possible lack-that-could-soon-be) is a differentiating factor, and part of the point, again (since it’s just you and the cash buyers, basically); also, it’s not just any point, mind you, but one of the many things that make this (not only a point that possibly but very soon could be considered a difference for many, an alternative to the case).