The housing market has undergone a series of changes in the past 30 years. One thing that has remained constant, despite the market’s fluctuating stability, is your home’s potential to be one of your biggest investments. If you’re contemplating selling your home you can be sure to net a higher return on your investment by following three simple steps.
1. Evaluate the Current State of the Housing Market. Before you decide to sell, first determine the state of the housing market that you are in. A recent Gallup Poll discovered that 69% of Americans think now is a good time to buy a house. However, houses could very well be selling at or above market value in Chicago and not in Seattle or Vermont, which is why it is important to evaluate your local market rather than looking at patterns on a nationwide scale. In your analysis of your local market’s health, ask yourself: Are houses in the area selling for less than they were initially worth? Are residents optimistic about the future of the area? Are many people looking to buy in the area? The answer to each of these questions, and similar questions, could help to indicate whether your housing market is currently experiencing an up or a down.
A sign that your particular market is buyer and, in turn, seller friendly is low mortgage interest rates. Rates have recently been low due to the Federal Reserve’s stimulus program, however, analyst are making predictions that, as the economy improves, those low rates won’t be around much longer. Another number that could influence success in your housing market is the number of homes that are for sale. It’s simple economics really, if the demand is high where supply is low then sellers are able to see higher returns.
2. Evaluate your Home’s Market Value. Finding out your homes monetary value is a no brainer, but it is also important to determine the opportunity cost and associated cost of selling your home and/or purchasing another. If after considering cost, such as the quality of schools in the area or the cost of maintaining your current home relative to a new one, you determine that you would not be gaining anything by moving, perhaps you should restrain from selling. It’s also important to keep in mind that happiness does have a cost. If selling your home and moving into another can make your life more joyful, take that into consideration when crunching numbers to figure out what selling your home is worth.
3. Make your Home Appealing to Potential Buyers. Figuring out what you can do to help sell your home is the third step you should follow before putting your house on the market. At this point you’ve already decided that you do in fact want to sell, but what can you do to sell fast and to get near your asking price? The way you price your house is directly related to the response that you will receive from buyers in the market. Listing your house at twenty-percent less than what it is worth is a strategy sure to bring buyers knocking at your door. While it might seem slightly insane to discount the house’s value by twenty-percent, after your house has been on the market for a short while, potential buyers would have bid the price of the home up to what it is worth, maybe even more.
Many homeowners believe that upgrading their homes is a surefire way to increase their return. This is true, but to an extent. If you’re planning on putting your home on the market in a matter of months and just now deciding to remodel your kitchen and bathrooms, you might just end up losing money. If you’re not quite ready to sell your home now, but see it as a possibility in the future, upgrade your home while you still have a chance to enjoy it and by the time you’re ready to sell it, you probably would have passed the breakeven point on that particular investment.
Don’t be afraid to take risk in the market, but don’t do so without having a full understanding of the consequences you could face. Selling your home certainly isn’t one of the easiest process to go through, but it doesn’t have to be a huge headache either. Knowing when to sell and what you need to do to sell can certainly make the whole ordeal easier for you.
Like selling your home, selling your life insurance policy is also a viable investment option. A life settlement is a no-risk investment option that can assist you in getting rid of a life insurance policy that is no longer needed. As a result, you or your loved one will receive a lump sum of cash greater than the insurance company’s cash surrender value. For more information on life settlements click here.