Selling a home in Los Angeles is a little different than some other areas of the country.
Because of the competition, do it yourself selling is not generally a viable option.
There is more to it than just putting a sign up and putting a little ad in the paper and waiting for the overzealous buyers to knock down your door waiting to sign a purchase agreement.
Therefore, listing your home with a reputable real estate agent is a must.
That's not where it ends though.
Steps to Selling Your Los Angeles Home There is more work to selling your home in the Los Angeles area than just signing a contract with a real estate agent.
Let's take a look at what must be done.
1.
Listing your home with a reputable agent is the first step, however you need to be sure that you choose the agent that will do the absolute best job for you.
Meet with multiple agents and have a list of questions for each.
Be sure that you select an agent that has been in the business for a significant amount of time and has a sizeable network of clients and an excellent reputation.
Your agent should be very familiar with your particular neighborhood.
A good agent will encourage and advise you to move into steps two and three.
2.
Staging your home is the next step to selling your home.
Staging your home consists of depersonalizing the home and making it a suitable platform for the potential buyers to visualize their home in the space that once was your home.
That means that you should remove all family pictures and memorabilia, and downsize any unnecessary furniture and clutter.
In other words, get rid of the junk and put into storage anything that you can possibly get along without.
This will give you a jump on packing to move anyway.
One important matter to pay attention to is being certain to pack away and keep out of sight any valuables.
There are those that use a showing to scope out a home and have less than respectable intentions.
So protect yourself and your family in that regard.
3.
Complete any repairs and maintenance that have been neglected.
Don't leave holes in the walls.
Fix any doors or windows that are broken or out of adjustment, do a thorough cleaning including the carpets, and any projects that you've been putting off should be accomplished.
If you can not or choose not to do the tasks yourself, your real estate agent can probably recommend some quality service providers for the jobs.
4.
Once the first three steps have been completed, you simply let your real estate agent handle all the advertising, showing, and promoting.
You follow his advice and provide whatever is necessary on your part, but this is the part where you relax.
With the competition in the Los Angeles area, especially if you are in one of the upscale neighborhoods, make selling your home a serious task that requires a professional.
Don't make the mistake of trying to undertake the task yourself and being taken for a ride.