Selling a home quickly in Torrance, California
What’s the best time to sell a house? The answer depends on you. What’s best for one person might be very different for you. Of course, there is no question that right now is a great time to sell a house in Torrance, California. California home prices in August 2021 were up more than 17% compared to last year, and properties are selling quickly. If you look at your house as an investment, this might be the optimal time to cash out. Right now, you can probably sell your Torrance home quickly.
Because supply is limited and interest rates are at rock bottom, many sellers benefit from bidding wars. Almost 75% of the homes sold in Torrance in May had multiple offers above the asking price, some with waived contingencies (meaning the buyer forgoes some of the usual caveats in a contract, like requiring that their own house sell first or waiting for the results of an inspection.)
But what if you need to sell very quickly?
Possibly you are under some financial pressure or have other reasons for wanting to make a quick sale in Torrance. Usually, when you sell your home, you make some repairs and updates to present it as nicely as possible to obtain the best price. But if you want to sell your house in Torrance fast, you may not have time to do all that. Your best choice may be a cash offer.
Is it worth it to sell my house on my own?
When you think about paying five percent (or a lot more) of the sales price of your home to a real estate agent, it’s very tempting to consider a FSBO (For Sale By Owner.) Right now, with homes selling like ice water in the desert, it seems even more tempting. But does it make sense?
Maybe, maybe not. Most homeowners don’t have the expertise to identify the right price for their property. We may not have access to the same resources that accredited real estate agents have, and we definitely lack the support services they can use. As a result, there is a significant differential in the price that buyers pay for a FSBO home compared to a home sold by a professional.
One situation in which it might make sense to bypass the agent (or agents) is when you already have a buyer lined up. In fact, that seems to be the most common motivation for FSBO transactions. The National Association of Realtors reported recently that over 75% of FSBO sales were completed within two weeks of listing. NAR speculated that most were handled without an agent due to the seller and buyer being acquainted before the deal. This theory was bolstered by the fact that half of the FSBO sales were not marketed at all.
But if you’re thinking of a FSBO, consider this: owners who attempt a FSBO often end up hiring an agent after trying on their own and being unhappy with the result. Suppose you do strike out on your own. In that case, there are some costs you will have to pay anyway, such as the multiple listing service (MLS) costs, marketing expenses that the real estate agent would typically cover, and most likely the buyer’s agent commission.
To earn the commission, your agent would advise you on preparing the home (needed repairs, freshening up, and also staging.) The agent also will arrange for professional photos that will show your home in the best possible way and then display those pictures in numerous places. The agent will conduct a comparative market analysis and recommend the best price to attract attention and offers, based on other sales in the area and their knowledge of the market conditions. Often the agent will schedule showings, including open houses, and keep track of interest in your property. And, of course, the agent will help you evaluate offers and negotiate.
What is a cash offer?
As the name implies, a cash offer for your home means a person or company is offering to buy the house without a mortgage or other financing. The offer is from their existing resources and thus less likely to run into delays or obstacles. Cash offers might come from investors who buy houses to flip and resell, perhaps after making a few upgrades, or retirees who use equity accrued in a previous home to make an all-cash purchase and avoid a mortgage in their golden years. Wealthy buyers sometimes make cash purchases for convenience, although they often recognize the value of low-interest rates and finance their real estate purchases.
iBuying companies are another source of cash offers. The “I” can refer to “internet,” “instant,” or “institutional.” In any case, these companies are typically buying houses using automated valuation models to identify and make offers on homes without ever seeing them. The advantage to the seller is a quick sale, with no repairs, cleaning, staging, or showings. Once you accept the offer from the iBuyer, you determine the best closing date, which can be as soon as 7 to 10 days in some cases. There is no need to wait for an appraisal, inspection, contingencies, or for the buyer’s financing to be approved.
You may not get the same price as you could if you made repairs, refreshed the interior décor, scheduled showings and open houses, and waited for the right buyer to come along. On the other hand, if you do all those recommended things and the market dives in the meantime, you still might not. Real estate in a high-cost area like Torrance, California, is hard to predict. Given the cost of your home, you also have to factor in the amount of money spent on continuing to cover the ownership cost while you wait for the perfect buyer and balance that against any unknown difference in the final sales price.
So back to the question: if you need to sell in a hurry, the best time to sell is now.
John Medina specializes in helping homeowners in Torrance, CA sell their homes fast at the best cash offer with no realtor fees.[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column] [/et_pb_row] [/et_pb_section]
