Want to know what it takes when selling a home in 2024 for top dollar? The market is shifting to a more competitive state or as we like to call it a “seller’s market” in the industry. But not every home is seeing a multiple offer or even getting full price.
Story time. We had several moments last year where our sellers were able to sell their homes to cash buyers for more money than recently sold homes in their neighborhoods. What no one sees is the months of preparation and work we do with the seller to make this happen.
The home Kim sold in Laurelhurst had almost 20 offers and sold for $200K over asking. Our team spent close to six months working with the seller as they transitioned into assisted living and prepped the family home for sale. It is a huge and sometimes super emotional undertaking for both the seller and our team. But we are so committed to our client’s outcome that we keep the faith throughout the process. And that process is our “Team Diva Method To Sell A Home In Seattle.”
Some buyer brokers call it the Diva Tax. Meaning that their buyers are going to pay more for that home.
Below is the guide we used to help our clients achieve
What You Need to Know About Selling a House in 2024
In this blog, we are going to dive into the five big tips you need to know about selling a home in 2024. Let’s do this!
- #1 Tip: The True Cost of Getting Your Home Ready for the Market
- #2 Tip: How to Prep Your House to Make Sure It Sells Over Asking
- #3 Tip: Online Marketing is a Key Component for Getting Top Dollar
- #4 Tip: Who Pays the Buyer Agent’s Commissions in 2024?
- #5 Tip: Follow Our Team Diva Method on How to Sell a House to Win in Any Market
Start Here – How to Sell a Home in Seattle
<<coming soon video about selling a home in Seattle>>
Make sure to read the blog below about the nuances of how to win in this market. But before you go any further you need to educate yourself about the home selling process. The smartest Diva Dwellers are the ones who do a deep dive into each step it takes to sell a home in Seattle this year.
- Download our Guide “How to Sell a Home in Seattle”
- Read the very detailed blog “Guide to Selling a Home in Seattle”
- Check out our guide “Staging Your Home Will Help You Make More Money”
- Review our blog about “How Much It Costs To Prepare Your Home to Sell”
- Read our detailed guide on “The Type Of Work You Need To Do To Sell Your House”
- Watch Kim’s Video About Each Step You Need to Know About Selling a Home in Seattle
Have Our Sellers Guide Sent to Your Inbox
Tap here to download our home seller’s Guide >
Let’s get started!
Secrets to Selling Your Home for More Than Your Neighbor in 2024
Let’s dive into everything you need to know about selling your home in 2024.
The True Cost of Getting Your Home Ready for the Market
Did you know that the cost of contractors and materials has gone up almost 40% since 2018?? Let’s just say costs have gone up for everything and this includes getting contractors to do work on homes that are coming on the market. Back in the day, it would cost our clients about $5000 – $7,000 to paint, landscape, clean, and stage their homes. Now we have seen the prep work go to about $12,000 to $25,000 to get a home ready to sell in Seattle.
Here is a general list of expenses to prep your home for sale.
- Staging – $3,000 – $6,000
- Landscaping – $500 – $3,500
- Repairs – $1,000 – $3,000
- Painting – $7,000 – $10,000
- Clean Windows – $250 – $400
- Deep Clean – $400 – $1,500
- Total: $12,150 – $24,400
For more specific information about the costs involved to sell your home check out our very detailed blog “How Much Does It Cost To Prep My Home for Sale.”
Doing Regular Home Maintenance Will Save You Big When You Go to Sell Your Home
Pay now or pay later. Whatever you do, do not put off your home maintenance. Avoiding your yard, or downspouts, or that random leaking faucet will all come into play. Last year we saw some home sellers have to pay an additional $25,000 because they had not done regular maintenance on their home. Buyers are super picky and want to buy a home that is in good condition.
Please Note: Deferred maintenance costs increase the above total by $10,000 to $25,000.
How to Prep Your House to Make Sure It Sells Over Asking
Last month Lindsy listed a home in West Seattle that we all thought for sure was going to be one of those tough-to-sell homes. We shopped the property to developers but ended up with no takers. Lindsy and her sellers decided to go all in and made sure the home was as cute as it could be for a first-time home buyer. They cleaned 40 years of one homeowners out of the space, updated the kitchen, made repairs, staged the home in a super creative way, and marketed the home. The home was getting offers 8 hours after it went live on the market. Why? They followed our very detailed prep list process.
Below is a general list of what we look for when we are doing our initial home walkthrough. Each home is different. And we always prepare a list that is specific to your needs.
The Complete List of Prep Work You Need to Do BEFORE You List Your Home
- Fix any items that are broken in the home – especially items that are easy to fix. Some of these items might impact the buyer’s ability to get a loan or scare off a potential buyer.
- Appliances: Replace any super old, ugly, or not fully functional appliances.
- Paint: New paint inside everywhere – even if it is just one coat.
- Front Door and Entry Area: Repaint the area unless it is in exceptional condition. You have one chance to make a first impression.
- Exterior Paint: You might need to do some exterior paint depending on the weather and wear and tear.
- New Carpeting: Any carpets that are two years or older, are worn, have a weird color, or if there are pets in the home need to be replaced.
- Broken Window Seals: Replacing any double pane windows with broken seals. They will be called by the inspector and potentially an appraiser.
- New Lighting: Nothing makes a home look diva ready like new lighting. Especially if the lighting in the home is cheap, dated, mismatched, broken, etc… And NO Boob Lights EVER!
- Safety Issues: Correct any “safety issues” that might come up in an inspection or in a home appraisal, such as, no handrails where necessary, broken walkways that could be a trip hazard, etc…
- Kitchen Refresh (if necessary): Repainting kitchen cabinets and replacing the countertops go a long way to make a home look updated with minimal effort.
- Bathrooms: Regrout and /or recaulk in bathrooms where necessary.
- Tile: Replace any super damaged or broken tile in kitchen or baths.
- Flooring: Replace any super damaged flooring that is not carpeting, especially if it is a small space.
- Decks and Balconies: Make sure any decks or balconies are repainted if necessary and the decking is in good shape.
- Basement/Garages: Paint the bare floors with a nice cement paint to make it look clean and photo ready.
- Light Bulbs: Make sure all the bulbs in the home are working and in the same hue/tone.
- Landscaping: Fluff the yard and landscaping.
- Moss/Dirt on Patios: Powerwash any concrete that is mossy or super dirty.
- New Outlet Covers: You would be surprised how many kid stickers we find on outlet covers. And the inspector will call an outlet that does not have a cover.
- Driveway and Patios: Pressure wash the driveway or backyard patio.
- Moss on the Roof/Gutters: Cleaning any moss off the roof and cleaning gutters.
- Fresh Driveway Gravel: Sometimes adding gravel to the sides of the home or driveway if needed.
- Decorative Pots: Add planted decorative pots to decks and porch if needed.
- Staging the Home (duh): Professionally Stage the home!
Get Nerdy With Some Additional Blogs
- How Long And What it Takes to Prepare a Home for Sale >
- Staging Your Home Will Help it Sell for More Money >
- Fix What’s Broken >
Online Marketing is a Key Component for Getting Top Dollar (Reels, blog with the architect, etc..)
Last year our process of selling homes was put to the ultimate test. The slower market meant that we had to try new methods to reach what few buyers were in the market for that specific home. And key to this was implementing our online marketing strategy.
Our strategy is always evolving and we will continue to work at reaching people. But let’s just say we are not making a viral Reel and hoping it works. We are going to where buyers and their agents are to ensure they bring their clients to our listings.
Our Goal: Find potential buyers and make sure our listing is the one that they want to buy.
Some people are online, some on social media, others on email, and it goes on. Basically, the goal is to reach the buyer and/or their real estate broker where they consume the most amount of content.
Here is the ever-evolving list of an effective online and old-school marketing strategy:
- Over 45 Photographs of the Home for the MLS
- 3D Tours
- Floor Plans
- Optimized Video Made Specifically for the Home
- Highly Optimized Listing Page on the Website (we made a new update for 2024)
- In-House Marketing: Silent Talkers and Top Ten Sellers’ List
- Detailed Blog Providing Additional Information for the Buyers
- Email marketing to buyers’ brokers
- Marketing for Broker Tours and Open Houses
- Multiple Short Form Videos Made for the Home (Reels, YouTube Shorts, TickTok, etc…)
- Engaging Social Media Posts
- Paid Ads on Facebook and Instagram
- Just Listed Postcards
- And so much more (we are going to a marketing conference in February so expect more to come)
Check out our blog about our online marketing strategy for more details >
Who Pays the Buyer’s Agent’s Commissions in 2024?
The seller no longer has to pay for the buyer’s agent’s commission.
Now this is the biggest change in our industry in years!!!!! In our buyer blog, we go into detail about the why and how this all came about. I will do my best to keep this short and simple.
In the past, the expectation was that the seller was going to pay the buyer’s agent for their services as part of the home sale. There was a lawsuit and low and behold that method and tradition was seen as price fixing. The case is still in appeals and the final settlement will not be known for years to come. In the meantime, the majority of Washington state real estate brokers have been operating under the new compensation method since September of 2022. Our NWMLS saw the writing on the wall and decided to change the compensation method for buyer’s agents in the contracts.
Here is the BIG change the sellers paying the buyers’ agents commissions:
The seller is under no obligation to offer the buying agent compensation for bringing a buyer to their house. They can offer compensation if they deem it worthwhile to attract more buyers.
Many buyers have limited funds to pay their agents after coming up with the down payment, closing costs, and the other fees it takes to buy a home.
What we are finding is that the homes that offer a selling agent commission sell faster and for more money.
– Kim V. Colaprete, Lead Listing Diva
But in the end, what the seller wants to pay is (if any) the seller’s choice.
Follow Our Team Diva Method on How to Sell a House to Win in Any Market
Team Diva has a tried and true method of selling a home that WORKS! Many sellers were caught off guard when the interest rates spiked in the Fall of 2022. And to be honest many listing agents did not have a method to market their homes in a stabilizing/decreasing market. Not Team Diva! You know we know how to get homes sold.
Check out our blog “Guide on How to Sell a Home in Seattle” for all of the steps it takes to sell a home using the Diva Difference method.
What is the Diva Difference?
It is these simple steps guided by the 25 years of listing homes in Seattle hustle and supported by the most amazing marketing team in the business!
- Choose a listing broker that is a good fit for you
- Conduct a detailed walkthrough of the home with your listing team
- Fix What’s Broken In the Home
- Make Sure Your Home is Perfect for Buyers
- Prep Incredible Marketing for the Home
- Strategically Price Your Home
- Implement a Detailed Marketing Strategy
- Sign a Winning Offer
- Manage the Transaction
- Negotiate the Inspection
- Prep for the Lender’s Appraisal
- De-Stage the Home/Move Out
- Finish Any Inspection items
- Prep the Home for the Buyer’s Walkthrough
- Sign Your Closing Papers
- Prep all Warranties and Keys for the Buyer
- Closing Day!!!!
Thanks For Reading Our Secret Tips On How to Sell Your Home For the Most Amount of Money in 2024
Thank you for reading through this detailed blog on how to make sure your home is one of the houses that sells in multiple offers in 2024. We have a deep passion for helping people make these big moves. Let’s make a date and get the process started.
Next Steps for Selling Your Home in 2024
- Download Our Home Seller Guide
- Make an Appointment with Me to Have a Private Chat About Your Home
- Conduct a Team Diva Detailed Walkthrough to Figure Out What Your home Needs
- Start Your Process of Prepping Your Home for Sale
- Sell Your Home for More Than Expected and Join Our Diva Dweller Community
We are here to help. Our team understands that this process can take a year or two. And we are more than willing to give you a personalized plan to get the ball rolling. Feel free to contact us directly at thediva@teamedivarealestate.com or call/text 206-271-0264.
