How to “Sell Home by Owner” in San Diego’s Real Estate Scene
Maintaining a home can feel like a job in and of itself. Paying for repairs can create even more stress, especially in Southern California where the cost for everything is high. When other life circumstances create an even greater squeeze, you may simply decide it’s finally time to sell your Orange County home.
You hear it on the news and might have even seen the evidence around town: San Diego’s real estate scene is hot with home buyers clamoring to get in. That may be good news for sellers who don’t have old homes that need repairs or who haven’t received new military orders and, therefore, need to unload their houses fast. But, for you, it triggers stress and even a little doubt. You can’t afford the money or time it takes to market your home with a real estate agent in the hopes you’ll get a fast and fair price.
Selling your home without an agent is a great way to cut costs, especially when you consider that most REALTORS® charge thousands of dollars in fees. But selling a home “by owner” in San Diego comes with its own set of hassles. And there’s no guarantee that the sale won’t still drag on for months.
There are steps you can take, however, to get the process started. There are even ways to reduce the stress of getting your home sold fast and for a fair price. Here’s what you can do:
Step 1
Set the price
- Hire an appraiser to determine your home’s value.
- Get the house inspected to uncover critical repairs.
- Compare its style, age, size, and numbers of bedrooms and bathrooms with homes in the neighborhood that have sold in the last six months. Include property condition in this comparison, too.
- Then, price your home to reflect your research—and to attract the right buyers
Step 2
Prep you home
- Clean your house from top to bottom, haul away trash, and donate unwanted items. Declutter what’s left behind and even reorganize the furniture to create more space.
- Perform the repairs and upgrades the home inspector recommended.
- At the very least, have these inspection reports on hand to show all the potential buyers who visit.
- Increase your home’s curb appeal, too, by hiring professionals to mow the lawn and, if needed, pressure wash the house.
Step 3
By Ads
- Add ”for sale by owner” signs to your front lawn.
- Buy additional ads wherever you can. Market your house in San Diego newspapers, with websites like Redfin, and on flyers and postcards to mail around town. Pay to have your home listed on agent-only sites, like California’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Buy targeted ads on social media, too.
- The more exposure your home gets, the more likely it’s going to sell—let alone, sell fast.
Step 4
Show your house
- Agree to show your home to real estate agents and their buyers when they ask. They’ll need to see the house inside and out to know if they want to make an offer.
- If you work long hours, attach a lockbox to your door or a gate. Be sure to include access instructions in the ads you buy.
- Hold open houses on the weekends, too.
- Be sure to follow up with your visitors.
Step 5
Pay the buyer’s agent
- It’s customary for the seller’s real estate agent to pay the agent who represents the buyer. Since you’ll be selling your San Diego home “by owner,” you’ll have to pay their commission.
- One to three percent of the sale is usually enough compensation. The more you offer upfront or in your ads, however, the more likely agents will be to show their buyers your home.
As you can see, selling your home without an agent can still be a lot of work. It can cost quite a bit, too. Connecting immediately with an all-cash buyer or a local real estate advisor can solve these problems fast. Sell Your House Direct happens to be both. And, we offer the easiest process there is for selling your house yourself.
How SYHD Makes Selling Your San Diego Home Fast and Easy
Our mission at SYHD is to provide a solution to home sellers that yields the quickest and easiest return. As home-buying specialists, we buy as-is houses for cash with the option to close in seven days or less. As real estate advisors, we explore other options that may yield a higher net profit and even suggest reputable buyers who can also close quickly. Even better, we charge zero commissions and fees for our services.
That means, if your home has deferred maintenance and you’re facing foreclosure, there is no need to worry. We’ve got the sale covered. If you’ve suffered a divorce or a death in the family, or you just want to retire and get rid of an old rental, we can help you with that, too. Have you inherited a property and live out of state or are you moving to a senior living apartment because of your health? For whatever reason you need the sale of your home to be easy, SYHD can make it happen in more ways than one. In fact, helping you sell your home “by owner” in San Diego—to us or another buyer—is just part of what we do.
This is how we work:
Step 2 →
Within 24 hours, we contact you with an offer
Step 3 →
We close the deal and pay you cash when it fits your schedule
Step 4 →
We handle the rest, even helping you to move out