Is your home ready to list for sale?

Is your home ready to list in the MLS?

It’s a great question since I see a lot of homes listed for sale in the MLS that are clearly not ready to be adverstised out in the market yet.

What do I mean?

• Homes listed in the MLS for days, weeks and even months without photos.
• Disclosures to the buyer not completed.
• No flyers inside the house.
• Unable to find the virtual tour if there even is one.
• Unable to locate a video if there even is one.
• Well Permit info non-existent.
• Homes not staged or even de-cluttered.

If you are going to list the house in the MLS at the very least there should be photos to accompany the listing. Believe it or not many homes get listed in the MLS without even one photo. Really there should be professionally shot photos of the house for sale.

Obvously all the listing paperwork including the disclosures to the buyer need to be filled out and loaded into the MLS. Potential buyers or other brokers need this info to make a decision on whether or not to look at your home.

Color flyers should be inside the home at all times when the house is actively listed in the MLS and accepting showings. Buyers like to take home nice color photos of the house if they like it.

Virtual tours and videos of your home for sale need to be advertised and on the web so buyers searching online can easily find the photos and video. If your house is listed in the MLS you should be able to Google your address and have professional photos or a video show up for that address immediately. Generally it should show up in the #1 position of Google. Example; buyer drives by your house and goes home to Google your address or even better does it on their smartphone right in front of the house. Better have a video. Videos show up great on smartphones.

In and around Parker Colorado many of the homes have wells. Wells require permits and permit numbers so the Colorado Divison of Water can keep track of who owns the well and/or water rights. Listing a house or property for sale without having this info easily available is crazy. This is all info that buyers will want up front and generally well before an offer is ever made.

To me de-cluttering a home is one of the first things that must be done. It has to be done before the house if photographed and before it is listed for sale in the MLS. I’m shocked when I go in homes with buyers to see that the house is very cluttered and in disarray. Make your property inviting and warm and easy to walk around.

This is not a compete list but it is a good baseline for getting started. Make sure to ask your listing agent or broker if the property is ready to go. Make sure there are photos for the MLS and the house is in good shape. It can mean the difference between a sale and sitting on the market for months without an offer.