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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 real estate agent 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, we 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 real estate agent 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

We had the pleasure of working with Caitlin Beanan as our real estate agent, and we couldn't be more pleased with the experience. From start to finish, Caitlin was exceptional in every way. Her communication was top-notch she was always available to answer our questions, no matter the time of day or night. From the very first meeting, she made sure we understood every step of the process and took the tim...

— Joyce S.

TESTIMONIALS

If you’re looking for a Bay Area Realtor, you simply can’t do better than Caitlin Beanan. As a first-time homebuyer, there was so much we didn’t know, and we couldn’t have been in better hands than with Caitlin. Caitlin made us feel as though we were her only client from start to finish (even though that was far from the truth!). We never felt like she didn’t have time for our questions, no matter how bi...

— Catherine D.

TESTIMONIALS

If I could give 6 stars I would. Caitlin is a master of her craft and a force to be reckoned with when it comes to negotiations. This was my first time working with her for my first home purchase and she would also go above and beyond to make sure I was up to date on all things document-wise, or context on a home I was interested in. I couldn't have asked for a better agent and the home that I ended up l...

— Victor M.

TESTIMONIALS

When we started looking for a place to buy we thought of Caitlin since we knew she was very personable and we were first-time home buyers. She set up an initial call with us so she could learn what we were looking for in a home and she also walked us through the whole process. She was very proactive in helping us look by sending us multiple listings she thought could potentially fit what we were looking ...

— Alexandra L.

TESTIMONIALS

Caitlin helped me with the sale of a property earlier this year. I was impressed from the start with her very professional approach. I felt her sincerity and honesty from the start. She understood my unique position and definitely went out of her way to help me when she did not have too. She went the extra mile in every regard. I am convinced because if her guidance and commitment, we got a lot more than...

— Koleen P.

TESTIMONIALS

OK - to be honest, we knew Caitlin was extraordinarily talented at singing, dancing, and acting, but we had no idea how stellar she was at real estate! From our first meeting about house hunting with Caitlin, we knew we couldn't go wrong with her as our agent. She is knowledgeable, confident, honest, and so, so real. She has her finger on the pulse of the markets up and down the Peninsula, and in San Fra...

— Kristina H.

Work With Caitlin

Looking to buy, sell, or just have a question? I'm always available to help and would love to work with you. Contact me today to find out how we can be of assistance to you!