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Tips On Selling a Home in Michigan

Homeowners looking to sell their Upper Peninsula Michigan home will quickly find there are numerous details to learn about the selling process, not to mention the complex legal aspects of real estate sales. An experienced real estate agent can help a home seller navigate this tricky process and help them get the best sales price for their home.


Why You Need to Sell Your Home With a Real Estate Agent

Sometimes people attempt to go it alone when they try to sell their homes but find it to be an overwhelming process. Emotions also often get in the way. After all, it is their home and a place where many special memories reside. A real estate agent removes emotion out of the process to ensure the best decisions are made.

They also smooth the path to faster sales by providing many valuable services, including but not limited to:

- Accessing pools of potential buyers looking for homes within a specific price range with the features they seek.
- Writing an accurate listing with the right details and words sprinkled in to appeal to local buyers.
- Scheduling open houses to showcase the home.
- Providing good marketing to attract potential buyers.
- Helping identify and focus on serious local buyers while weeding out curious individuals not looking to actually buy a home.
- Ensuring Michigan’s required seller’s disclosure statement is correctly and fully completed to avoid expensive lawsuits.
- Determining all information required to be shared with home buyers, such as a lead paint disclosure, is completed in accordance with Michigan law.

Realtors representing buyers may be less inclined to show homes for sale by owner due to perceived industry risks, and tend to gravitate their clients toward properties represented by professional agents. Connecting with a real estate agent who is thoroughly familiar with the Upper Peninsula real estate market increases the chance you’ll sell your home in a timely fashion.


Pricing Your Home to Sell

Pricing your home to sell is a key component of success, and it’s important to identify its fair market value when setting a price. A skilled realtor will evaluate current market conditions for selling your house by performing a market analysis (also known as a comparative market analysis). This process helps to accurately price your home so it can be successfully be listed amongst other similar homes on the market. When a house isn’t priced accurately, it can be difficult to attract buyers and is likely to drag out the selling process.


Preparing Your Home to Sell Fast

To prepare to sell your house fast, there are several steps you can take to make a property more appealing to potential buyers.

- Touching up paint on walls or doors that are scuffed (repaint if necessary) to give them a well-cared-for appearance.
- Maximizing lighting in the home by removing heavy drapes, washing windows, adding new lampshades; good lighting always appeals to buyers.
- Emptying closets to reduce them to being half-full and organize the items inside.
- Removing excess furniture from rooms to give them a larger appearance.
- Replacing any worn cabinet and drawer fixtures in the kitchen and bathroom.
- Fixing leaky faucets and remove any signs of previous leakage.
- De-personalizing your home by putting photos, memorabilia, and other belongings into storage; buyers won’t be able to imagine the home as their own if they’re looking at it as yours.
- Cleaning up the yard, keep lawn and greenery manicured, plant flowers, and clean gutters. If the mailbox is dingy, replace it.


It can be hard to look at one’s own home with a discerning eye. An agent is skilled to identify areas that could use some TLC and provide other pointers to spruce up the home’s appeal to buyers.


Accepting an Offer on Your Home

Once a buyer is attracted, this is only a part of selling your home. Many things can go wrong through the rest of the process, especially when it comes to negotiations. It’s not uncommon for haggling over the home’s price or disagreements over who will pay for closing costs to occur. Professional negotiations work and result in a seller receiving a fair price for their home.

Consulting with a local realtor ensures lowball offers and potential mishaps with the purchase agreement process are avoided. Remember, a buyer almost always will have an agent representing them. You don’t want to put yourself at a disadvantage by representing yourself. In the long run, this will save money.


Call Up North Reality to Schedule a Free Home Evaluation

The best Michigan listing agents know exactly what local buyers seek and instinctively know how to reach interested buyers seeking an Upper Peninsula home. The experienced, caring, and knowledgeable team of realtors at Up North Realty know the Upper MI market well and will work hard to help you sell your home.

It’s our promise to serve our clients with commitment, honesty, fairness, and integrity. The trust of our clients is important to us, and we strive to provide the highest level of collaboration and customer care throughout the selling process. To schedule a free home evaluation, contact us at 906-524-2211.