Once you put your home on the market, you’ll want to keep the timeline on-track so you can get to and through closing without having problems. Trouble is, it’s common for hiccups to occur along the way. These can be such things as a problem found during the home inspection, or, a change in the buyer’s financing. Whatever it might be, you should be prepared so you aren’t completely taken by surprise. Effective game planning can prevent several things from happening and allow the transaction to go through.
How to Keep a Home Sale On-Track
You might not be aware of how common it is for home sales to fall through, but nonetheless, it’s a reality you might have to deal with and knowing those common problems is a big part of success. The good news is that some problems are completely fixable, unfortunately, not all are as easy to reconcile. There are a number of scenarios which can cause problems selling your home. The trick is to get in the know before you actually list your home for sale.
“If the buyer is seeking a Federal Housing Administration-insured loan, be aware that the home may have to meet certain safety and soundness requirements that typically don’t come into play with conventional loans. To avoid delays, sellers can take care of things that might be flagged in an FHA appraisal before listing, such as chipping paint.” —Market Watch
Selling a home isn’t exactly a straightforward process and you can’t anticipate every contingency, but that doesn’t mean you ought to try and wing it. Being prepared is key and there are steps you can take to keep a home sale on-track:
- Get a pre-listing home inspection. Before you put your home on the market, it’s best to be in the know about its condition, along with its systems, appliances, and fixtures. If you have a pre-listing inspection, you’ll be alerted to any existing or potential problems and be able to take action so these don’t take you by surprise later.
- Set the right listing price from the beginning. This can’t be overstated because of how much of a negative impact it can have on selling your home. If you set the price even a bit too high, you’ll most likely have to drop the price and when this happens (especially more than once), it will take on a negative vibe because agents and buyers will wonder what’s wrong with the home.
- Gather all the information on your home and neighborhood. You can have your home appraised and when the property goes under contract, the buyer’s lender will certainly order an appraisal. You should have as much information about your home and the neighborhood ready for the appraiser to get the best valuation.
- Be willing to be flexible. You might have a buyer request to extend the timetable and reschedule the closing, or, some other type of concession. Don’t let small things get in the way to keep the sale on-track.
- Only accept offers from pre-approved buyers. Financing falling through is one of the most common reasons home sales don’t go forward. To minimize the risk, only accept purchase offers from buyers who are pre-approved for home loans.
Another helpful tip is to give your real estate listing agent the ability to negotiate. This is more than just a financial transaction, it also involves your life, which brings emotion into the equation. You certainly don’t want to sabotage your own efforts but it’s definitely tempting to try and micromanage the process. If you do that, you’ll drive yourself crazy because it’s not possible to control everything that will inevitably happen.