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How to Sell Your House Fast

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Life’s not a race, but it can sometimes feel like that when you put your house up for sale. Especially if you’re crunched for time, you need to know how to sell your house fast — plus, your house can lose value the longer it sits on the market. Get a good start out the gate by emulating some of the world’s fastest animals. On your mark, get set, GO!

Make your property visible.

Fast animal to emulate: Cheetah

Cheetahs and their iconic spots stand out on the savannah. You need your property to be just as visible with good marketing and lots of exposure.

A few strategies:

Make your home more appealing to the general public.

Fast animal to emulate: Octopus

Octopus aren’t the fastest animals in terms of distance traveled, but they are some of the fastest animals when it comes to camouflage. They can change their entire appearance in the same time it takes for you to blink your eye!

The octopus is a great inspiration if you’re trying to sell your home fast because they remind us of the importance of blending in. A super-custom home will often turn buyers away. It’s not always the worst idea to paint over that blood orange wall with a simple eggshell white, or to take down anything that others might find tacky or gaudy. 

And remember — a clean house with no visible clutter is a necessity for becoming more appealing to the general public. While you want your property to stand out like a cheetah, it can stand out in a bad way if things aren’t tidy. Try to blend in by giving off a “blank slate” feel for potential homebuyers.

Research to get the right price.

Fast animal to emulate: Dolphin

Did you know dolphins swim up to almost 40 miles per hour? They’re not just fast, they’re known as one of the smartest animals on the planet. Use their smarts as your inspiration by finding the best price for your house. 

A real estate agent will help you do this, but if selling FSBO, pull comps to see neighboring house sale prices. Take renovations and flaws into account when determining your price. If your listing price is lower than your home’s value your house will probably sell fast, but at your expense.

If you’re struggling to come up with an accurate price, sell with a time-limited event from RealtyHive. You still get to put in your final say as to whether you want to sell your house or not (and you could potentially make more money than in a traditional house sale).

Work with the right people.

Fast animal to emulate: Pronghorn

Pronghorn are not antelope (but usually are mistaken for them), but they are the fastest land animal in North America. They don’t really have predators because of their speed (they can run up to 60 miles per hour) but the other reason is because they migrate in packs.

When you’re looking for an agent or title company to sell your house fast, it’s important to find someone who can work on your timeline. Make your expectations clear from the start and look around for other options if the partners you’re looking at can’t deliver. 

What to do if you’re extremely crunched for time:

The easiest answer to sell your house fast is to take a lower offer and/or go for a cash closing. This is not ideal, but it might be necessary if time is true of the essence. Be wary of “we buy houses for cash” companies because it guarantees you’ll get ripped off.

Reference: Tips on Selling your House Fast

The other alternative is to list with RealtyHive. Our time-limited events mean your house can go quick (and sometimes you might receive offers even before the day of the auction), sometimes at a price that’s more than what you expected. Look into the benefits of selling with RH!

Why “We Buy Houses for Cash” Is a Bad Idea

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Who hasn’t seen one of those “We Buy Houses for Cash” billboards or commercials? Selling your house for cash might sound enticing — especially if you’re worried about selling — but as Admiral Akbar says…

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Here are just some of the reasons you want to avoid the “We Buy Houses for Cash” schemes at all costs.

They’re not what they sound like.

As appealing as it might seem to get a bunch of upfront cash for your house, “We Buy Houses for Cash” doesn’t work like that. Due to anti-money laundering rules, no one will legally buy a house for cash. If you’re expecting a mob movie-style suitcase full of hundreds, you’ll be out of luck.

Some people are encouraged by the WBHFC format for its non-traced transaction, but more than anything, most people going this route are in it for a fast close. Unfortunately, this speed comes at a price.

They target people in desperate situations.

The sense of urgency in a WBHFC scheme is intentional. It’s designed for people in dire financial situations — such as struggling to afford their mortgage or needing to quickly sell their house.

Being in this kind of situation is super scary, but WBHFC is not the answer. Fortunately, there are much better options out there (we’ll get to that in just a minute).

They can be surprisingly picky about what they’ll buy.

While many WBHFC schemes pride themselves on buying a house “as-is,” this isn’t always the case. Most are actually very picky about what they’ll take. Houses might not qualify, or WBHFC companies will make it seem like they’re doing the seller a huge favor and significantly lower the buying price.

Additionally, commercial properties or land usually don’t qualify. 

They buy houses for much less than they’re worth.

If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Quick closing, buying “ugly houses” — these WBHFC “benefits” come at a price. More than anything, sellers won’t get nearly as much as their home as valued. WBHFC often buys for 30 to 50 percent less than a home’s market value.

While some might be willing to cut their losses, sell their house for cash, and lose money for the sake of time, there are much better alternatives. A time-limited event through RealtyHive is best for selling, and here’s why:

In the real estate world, “We Buy Houses For Cash” are part of the dark side. Choose the Force, and listen to Admiral Akbar — he’d tell you to go for RealtyHive for a safer and advantageous home sale.