6 Tips For Selling Your Home

So you have decided to sell your property. Before anything else, it is a good idea to sit down and clarify your motivations and draw up a basic time frame for the selling process.

Why Sell?

Why do you want to sell your property? Do you intend to simply find a larger property, get an ocean view or move to the lower 48? Being clear about your intentions for selling will make it easier for us to determine the most appropriate option for your real estate goals.

When Should I Sell?

It is most helpful for us to know what your time frame is for selling. Some sellers we work with already have their cabin booked onboard their Alaska Marine Highway ferry…others have an open timeline and just want to simplify their responsibilities. If you need to sell quickly, we can speed up the process by giving you a complete market analysis and action plan to obtain all of your goals. If there is no pressing need to sell immediately, you can sit down with one of our Coastal agents to review the current market conditions and find the most favorable time to sell. Each of our agents are well-versed in navigating our busy real estate market.

What is the Market Like in Ketchikan?

When you list your house with Coastal Real Estate Group, you can be sure that you will have our knowledge, expertise and negotiating skills at work for you to arrive at the best market prices and terms. We will keep you up-to-date on what is happening in the marketplace and the price of competing properties. Working with Coastal, you will know exactly how to price and when to sell your property.

How Do I Optimize My Finances?

Deciding to sell your property demands a serious consideration of your current financial situation and future possibilities. With the help of our qualified agents, you will be able to effectively assess the cumulative impact of these changes, estimate potential proceeds of selling your property, and plan effective tax savings and estate planning strategies. We will ensure that you not only take control of your finances, but use them to their fullest potential.

Why Choose Coastal?

Our office averages more sales per year than any other agency in Ketchikan. In the previous year, Coastal Real Estate Group was responsible for 46% of all home sales in Ketchikan. We attribute our immense success to the following:

• Coastal Real Estate Group markets globally.
  Not only does our office hold the majority of listings in town, but our listings are a part of the Multiple Listing Service, which allows our office to widely share listings with other offices. We also advertise in Southeast Living Magazine, Homes & Land, on Homes.com, Realtor.com, Zillow, local newspapers, on Facebook, as well as several other locations.
• Our website is highly ranked, comprehensive, user-friendly and updated daily.
  It is one of our strongest marketing tools. We average 200 views a day with nearly 30% of those from new visitors. It is just one more way that we provide our clients with the tools and services to assist them with their real estate needs.
• Every one of our agents is a professionally licensed Realtor.
  With 8 Realtors on board, we are the most diverse and fully staffed realty office in Ketchikan. Our Realtors hail from backgrounds ranging in customer service, hospitality, marketing, banking, tourism, and more. Several of our Realtors have been selling real estate for years, bringing with them extensive expertise in residential & commercial sales and property management services.
• We are the only real estate office located in downtown Ketchikan.
  We have the best exposure to visitors out of any other office in Ketchikan. This year we predict that Ketchikan will receive over 900,000 out-of-state travelers. Due to our location, we have a large amount of walk-in traffic.
• Our company and our Realtors are strongly rooted in the community.
  Coastal Real Estate Group is involved with the Chamber of Commerce, the Ketchikan Visitors Bureau, CHARR, and several local non-profits. We also make regular contributions to local charities and have renovated a historic building in the downtown area to show our support for the culture of Ketchikan.

What To Look For In An Agent

The following are a couple of factors to keep in mind when looking for a listing agent:

1. Experience & Expertise
   You want an agent who is familiar with our area and with the type of property you want to sell. At Coastal Real Estate Group, all of our agents have been involved in real estate both personally and professionally.
2. Education
   Every agent on the Coastal Real Estate Group team is a licensed REALTOR®. This means our agents are held to a higher code of ethics than a regularly state-licensed salesperson. Many of our agents also pursue the CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) Designation, held by the top 4% of Realtors in the nation.
3. Availability & Commitment
   Your agent should be capable of prompt and decisive action. Coastal agents make sure they have an open line of communication with their customers—it is a priority for our team.
4. Rapport
   Does your agent take the time to listen to your goals? Your Coastal agent will be your guide through the selling process, so it is important to find an agent that has a great understanding of your situation.

What Is Your Property Worth?

At Coastal Real Estate Group, we work in real estate full time. We monitor the pulse of Ketchikan’s real estate market daily. Making sure your listing is priced correctly for the market helps to ensure less time a house may sit on market. Real estate is what we do full-time, let us know how we can help mark your house SOLD!

What To Do To Prepare:

The following are a couple of factors to keep in mind when listing your property for sale:

1. Curb Appeal

   Keeping your landscape pristine and adding creative touches to your yard, such as colorful annuals, will create an immediate impact on potential buyers, especially in the professional photos we feature on our website.

2. Property Repairs

   Simple upgrades such as window repairs, polishing doorknobs, and a fresh coat of paint in the most frequently used rooms will instantly brighten up the property. Sometimes simple repairs can help your house sell more quickly or for more—other times, repairs are reflected in a strategic listing price to attract motivated buyers.

3. Cleanliness & Staging

   Keep your property uncluttered, sweet-smelling, and well-lit from top to bottom. Pay attention to details: put away the kitty litter, place fresh flowers near the entryway, or have your carpets cleaned. Simple actions, like reducing the number of family pictures, help a potential buyer see your house as their house.

4. Disclosures & Inspections

   We are very familiar with the legal procedures involved in disclosures. We are ready to help you develop a thorough disclosure statement beneficial to both you and the buyer, and suggest home improvement measures before listing.

5. Showtime

   Presenting your property to potential buyers is a job we handle for you. Your Coastal agent knows exactly what information will be most useful in representing your interests when speaking with prospective buyers.

Reviewing An Offer

Price is not always the determining factor when accepting an offer for several important reasons: the initial offer is usually not final, and there are a number of terms and conditions that may influence the final outcome of a price. You can trust our professionals to help you thoroughly evaluate every proposal without compromising your marketing position.

Negotiating The Right Way

We take the ethical responsibility of fairly negotiating contractual terms very seriously. It is our job to find a win-win agreement that is beneficial to all parties involved. You may even receive multiple offers before ratifying the one you judge to be the most suitable for you – and as your agents, we will guarantee a thorough and objective assessment of each offer to help you make the right choice.

An Accepted Offer

The accepted offer will dictate important timelines like the inspection period, projected closing and occupancy dates. During the process your Coastal agent will keep you constantly updated so you will always be prepared for the next step. You can rely on your Coastal agent to be familiar with closing timelines and to help get you to the closing table successfully and confidently.

Inspections & Appraisals

Most buyers will have the property inspected by a licensed property inspector within the time frame that was agreed upon in the signed home inspection addendum. If the buyer is working with a bank to secure financing, then the property will be appraised by a licensed appraiser to determine the value for the lending institution via third party. This is done so that the lending institution can confirm their investment in your property is accurate.

The Closing Agent

We can provide a list of regional title offices that assist in title research and signing of all real estate closings. The title office will research the complete recorded history of the property to ensure that the title is free and clear of encumbrances by the date of closing and that all new encumbrances are properly added to the title. Some properties are subject to restrictions which limit various activities such as building or parking restrictions. There may be recorded easements and encroachments, which limit the rights to use your property.

Contingencies

A contingency is a condition that must be met before a contract becomes legally binding. Examples of potential contract contingencies may include:

• Obtaining financing and insurance.
• Reviewing all pertinent documents, such as preliminary title reports and disclosure documents.
• Buyer finds their home inspection as acceptable and both parties agree on any repairs.

After each milestone is successfully closed and the contingencies are removed, you are one step closer to closing!

Closing Day

If you have come this far, this means that it is almost time for a congratulations! But WAIT! Do not forget to tie up these last details:

Final Walk-Through Inspection

More of a formality than anything else, the final inspection takes place the day before, or the day of the closing. Your Coastal agent will let you know when buyer requests to do their final walk-through. This is a time the buyer’s agent accompanies buyer through the property to verify that all is in working order, everything is the same as when the buyer last viewed the property, and that there are no extra items left behind.

Cancel Home Services & Utilities

Don’t forget to contact your utility providers to cancel your service at the address and to schedule forwarding service to your new location.

Closing

The closing agent at the title office will furnish all parties involved with a settlement statement, which summarizes and details the financial transactions enacted in the process. The buyer(s) will sign this statement and then you will sign as well as the closing agent, certifying its accuracy. If you are unable to attend the scheduled closing, your Coastal agent can help make arrangements for your remote signing. If you are receiving funds from the transaction, you can elect to either have the funds wired electronically to an account at your financial institution, or have a check issued to you at the closing. The seller should arrange to have all property keys and any other important information for the new purchaser at the closing, so that the purchaser may receive these items at this time.