2021 can be characterized as a seller’s market. Home prices rose by more than 13% between January and October of this year.

You can certainly bet that 2022 will bring more fireworks to the real estate market. If you’re selling a home, you might have a bit more competition as inventory levels start to pick up.

If you want to get your home to sell fast, you need to make sure that you do everything to get it ready to sell. A preparing your home for sale checklist is going to be your best friend in the coming weeks as you get your home ready to go to market.

What should be on that checklist? Read on to learn the top items to take care of when preparing your house for sale.

1. Selling Motivation

Why do you want to sell your home? This question determines what kind of sales strategy to take and how much time you have.

Sellers that want to sell for tax reasons have a very short window to make it happen for the 2021 tax year. You may have to focus on a quick sale rather than maximizing profits.

You might have a different reason, such as a relocation or change in family status. Whatever your motivation is, make sure you’re aware of it and share it with your real estate agent.

2. Sales Strategy

There are different ways to sell your home. The traditional method is to use a real estate agent and go through a lengthy process to sell your home.

What if you need to sell your home fast? There are nontraditional methods that can speed the process up. You can find a company that will buy homes for cash.

They’ll buy the home as-is. They’ll make an offer on the home, and some will even take care of repairs and restoration. Accept the offer and the home can close quickly.

3. Pick a Vendor

If you’re ready to sell the home, you’ll need a partner to make it happen. The right agent or cash for homes company will make all the difference in your home-selling experience.

If you’re going to use a real estate agent, get recommendations from friends and family. Look up agents in your area and check out their reviews.

Interview a few agents and ask them how they would market and sell your home.

Selling for cash means you have to find the right company to work with. Check out companies in your area, read reviews, and get quotes from several companies.

4. Price It Right

Pricing the home is a crucial piece of the puzzle. You don’t want to overprice the home and have it stay on the market for a long period of time. That’s only going to hurt your sales prospects and force you to lower the price.

Do your homework and know what homes are going for in the area. Look at homes sold in the area over the last few months.

Look at homes that closely match your home. The comps should have the same number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and square footage.

Take the average of the comparable recent sales and use that as a starting point for your sales price.

5. Inspect the Home

There’s a debate as to whether or not you should get a home inspection as part of preparing a house for sale. The reason why you should consider it is that you can sell the home faster.

It also spots any issues that would force you to renegotiate the contract. You can get in front of those issues so the sale doesn’t get delayed.

That might allow you to sell the home for more because you took care of those issues.

6. Make Minor Repairs

Minor repairs should be made to the home. Any nagging issues like small leaks need to get handled immediately.

Check the windows and doors for leaks and efficiency. One small adjustment could make a difference in your energy bill and the sales price of the home.

Any knicks in the walls or broken doors should be repaired as well.

7. Curb Appeal

Curb appeal makes people fall in love with your house as soon as they see it. Step outside of your home and see how the look can improve.

Remove any weeds, replace the welcome mat, plant flowers, or add hanging plants. A minor project that makes a difference is to paint the front door.

Make it vibrant and it will demand the attention of buyers.

8. Get Paperwork Together

It helps to anticipate questions about the house and get documentation ready to present to prospective buyers. Gather paperwork for any recent repairs, replacements, and items under warranty.

This includes roof replacements, solar panel installations, and appliances. Get these papers to show what’s still under warranty for the buyers.

Come across as organized, and you’ll impress buyers a lot. They’ll be more willing to trust you and buy your home.

Everything You Need for a Preparing Your Home for Sale Checklist

Even though it’s a seller’s market, there’s no guarantee that it will stay that way for long. By the time you list your home, the market could completely flip.

It makes preparing your house for sale even more important. You need to make sure you get the best price for your home as fast as possible.

What should be on your preparing your home for sale checklist? Your motivation to sell, pricing and selling strategies, repairs, and curb appeal all matter in the sales process.

Work the checklist and you’ll get your home shortly after it’s listed. For more wise real estate tips, click on the Homes tab at the top.