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14 steps to selling a home super fast

By WTOP Staff

The peak homebuying season is over, but you still want to sell your house before the first snow falls. Even in a slow season, there are steps you can take to sell your home quickly. How can you make it happen?

First, of course, you want to make sure your home looks its best. “Curb appeal is everything,” says Michael Mahon, general manager of HER Realtors in Columbus, Ohio. “Driving into the driveway and walking into that front door sets the expectations.”

Another factor that’s equally important for a speedy sale: setting the right price.

Many sellers think they should start the price high and then lower it later if the house fails to sell. But some agents say that’s often a recipe for a slower sale — sometimes even at a lower price.

“The first 30 days’ activity of your house being on the market is always the best activity you’re going to see,” Mahon says. If the house is priced fairly, you’ll get a lot of prospective buyers through the door and potentially attract multiple offers. But if the asking price is too high, many buyers and their agents will stay away, assuming you’re not serious about selling or you’re unwilling to negotiate.

[See: A Step-by-Step Guide to Homebuying.]

In a neighborhood of similar homes with frequent sales, it’s easy to estimate the correct sales price of your home by looking at the per-square-foot price of recently sold homes and making adjustments for yours based on condition and features.

In an area where the homes vary widely or there are few recent sales, estimating the sales price is more challenging. Start by looking at homes that have sold in your area and comparable neighborhoods in the past six months. Look at the listing photos and descriptions to compare features. See what the homes eventually sold for and how long they were on the market. Then find homes currently for sale, which will be your competition. All of these factors will give you an idea of the right sale price.

Call at least three real estate agents and ask each to prepare a comparative market analysis, which will include a recommended price for your house as well as data on comparable sales. Make sure you study the agents’ comparable properties carefully.

When choosing an agent, don’t assume that the one who suggests the highest price for your home is the best option. If that’s not the right price for the house, he or she may actually cause you more trouble because it could take longer to sell your home, and it may end up selling for less.

Before you start showing the home, look over it with a critical eye. Make sure it’s ready for prime time, sparkling clean and free of clutter.

“Once a potential buyer has seen the house, they’ve seen it! And if they don’t like what they see, they won’t be back for a second look,” home stager Lori Matzke, author of “Home Staging: Creating Buyer- Friendly Rooms to Sell Your House,” wrote on her blog. “But when a property shows well from the start, it creates a momentum and sense of urgency among buyers, giving the seller a marketable advantage over the competition.”

[Read: How to Compete in a Seller’s Market.]

Here are 14 tips to make your home sell faster.

Price it right from the start. Agents and buyers know when they find a good deal, and they know they need to move quickly. You’ll save yourself time and hassle if you skip the high-price shenanigans altogether.

Enhance your home’s curb appeal. That could mean adding new sod, planting flowers, painting the front door or replacing the mailbox. Prospective buyers form an opinion the moment they spot the home.

Update the interior and exterior. New fixtures, fresh paint and updated landscaping are all fairly easy and affordable ways to give your home a makeover. “It’s got to look up to the current market conditions and what’s in style,” Mahon says.

Clean and declutter. Remove knickknacks and excess furniture. The fewer things there are in the home, the larger it will look. You may want to hire a cleaning service to do a deep cleaning, including washing the windows.

Depersonalize. Remove family photos, religious items and political posters. Get all the children’s drawings off the refrigerator. You want prospective buyers to envision their family in the house, not yours.

Fix anything that’s obviously broken. A cracked windowpane may not bother you, but it gives the impression that the homeowner is careless about maintenance.

Stage the house to show how the rooms are supposed to be used. If you have odd rooms with no obvious role, give them one. An odd alcove off the kitchen could be staged as an office or a pantry, for example.

Make the property easy to show. The more flexible you are about visits, the more people will be able to see your home. Be ready to welcome prospective visitors early in the morning, at night and on weekends, with little notice.

[See: 5 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Real Estate Agent.]

Go away when the house is shown. You want would-be buyers to imagine themselves living in the home and to peek into closets without feeling like intruders. Leaving the house also gives them the freedom to discuss its pros and cons honestly without worrying about offending the seller.

Remove your pets. Also remove their paraphernalia, such as dog dishes and cat litter boxes (or at least hide them). A prospective buyer shouldn’t even know that a pet lives in the home if you can help it, Mahon says.

Deal with an agent who’s going to showcase your house on social media. Share the listing yourself, too. “We sell as many homes off Facebook as we do off the [multiple listing service],” Mahon says. Both the agency and the individual agents have Facebook business pages where they share listings.

Make sure your listing is on all the major online portals, including Zillow, Trulia and Realtor.com. This is usually part of an agent’s service, but it doesn’t hurt to double-check. Some sites allow you to go online and add comments and details about your house.

Ensure the listing has good photos, and lots of them. Most homebuyers start their search online and decide which homes they want to see based on the photos. You probably want something better than snapshots taken quickly with your agent’s phone.

Share information about life in the neighborhood. The listing should include photos not only of the house, but also of nearby recreation, dining and shopping areas. If the schools are good, make sure that information is in the listing. “You’re not only marketing the home — you’re marketing the lifestyle,” Mahon says.

More from U.S. News

Find the Best Real Estate Agent for You

The Best Online Tools for Your Housing Search

A Checklist for First-Time Homebuyers

14 Steps to Selling a Home Super Fast originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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