Selling your home is a major decision, and will probably become the focus of your life until it is over. Being prepared can make it go smoothly.

Have you thought about why you are selling? Your priorities affect the price you set for your home, the time you invest in preparing it for sale and, ultimately, the outcome of the sale. Are you willing to settle for a lower selling price just to have the sale go quickly, or would you rather hold out for the most money? Once you know your priorities, you can then work towards your goal.

Do some research to see what comparable homes in your area are selling for. A good real estate agent will help you set a fair price, and help with any and all other aspects of selling and buying. Remember that the price you set is the maximum that anyone will offer you for your home. You will get lower offers. If you set the price too high, you may get no offers at all. Be realistic about your pricing, so that buyers and their agents will take you seriously, and so your home doesn't sit unsold until its listing expires. If you want more than the home is worth, perhaps you should wait until the market improves. It would be better to not try to sell until you have a realistic chance of getting what you want for your home, rather than listing it too high and then having it for sale for a year or more. Buyers will begin to recognize it, and you might have a hard time getting that higher price even if the market does go up, because people will know it's been for sale for so long.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is selling without the help of an agent, or settling for the first person they meet. Take some time to get to know a few agents, and choose to work with someone you "click" with. Make sure they hear you when you tell them your needs, and make sure they're working for you, not some buyer they've got waiting in the wings.

Even before you set a price, it is a good idea to start making your home sale-worthy. In fact, well staged homes have been shown to sell faster and for more money. So if you are hoping to get as close to that maximum sale price as possible for your home, start fixing it up as soon as you consider selling. What does this mean? Well, a fresh exterior paint job goes a long way towards making your home look attractive to buyers. So does a tidy yard and a completely clean interior with no clutter. Sure, you live in your home. But while it is on the market, hide your loose papers, pack up your decorations and family portraits, and make sure the beds are made, the windows are clean, the doors and cupboards don't squeak, and clean towels hang neatly in the bathroom. A buyer wants to see the house, not your life spread out before them. Staging is just that, putting your home on stage, making it look like a set. This may seem contrived, but it works wonders.

Make sure a buyer can get the information they want about your home. You want your listing to include plenty of flattering pictures and lots of information about your home and property. Buyers tend to shy away from contacting a Realtor® about a listing unless they are really interested. So if there isn't much information available about your home right away, many buyers will never find out the key details that may have convinced them your home was the one they wanted.

Letting a buyer know a lot about your home includes admitting its flaws. Remember, hiding flaws can be seen as non-disclosure. If a buyer finds out something negative about the home after they've bought it, something you knew and didn't tell them, they can sue you. It is best to fully disclose all the pros and cons about your home. If possible, fix the problems.

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