Hollywood Hills’s luxury amenities and location make it popular with buyers who want access to all the excitement and adventure LA has to offer. When it comes time to list, sellers can take advantage of buyer interest in the area by preparing their properties with an agent’s expert guidance. If you’re ready for your home to make its grand entrance on the Hollywood Hills real estate scene, list a home that buyers can’t ignore by following this selling guide.
Preparing your home for success
Before listing their home on the market, sellers should determine their home’s value, partner with an agent, and stage their property to impress buyers. Doing so sets sellers up for success when their home listing goes live on a local MLS.
Finding the right agent
For professional guidance throughout your home sale, sellers should team up with an experienced local agent. It’s important to interview agents early so you’ll have access to their expertise from the very beginning. During the interview, you should ask questions that clarify the agent’s relevant experience, communication style, and professional skill set. Agents should also be willing to provide recent references from satisfied clients. Overall, a seller should feel comfortable contacting their agent when they need to.
Determine the value of your property
Determining a home’s value helps sellers decide if now is the right time to list their property. Sellers who don’t have enough home equity built up to pay off a remaining mortgage after a sale may want to wait to sell. Your agent can conduct a comparative market analysis comparing other prices of similar homes to set an accurate listing price for your property. An agent will tailor the figure based on a property’s unique features.
Staging the home and taking photos
When selling a home in Hollywood Hills, staging the property has a profound effect on buyers. Start by deep cleaning and decluttering each room to make it look well maintained and spacious. Then, redecorate in light and neutral tones to appeal to the most buyers. Sellers should take down personal items and tend to curb appeal as well. After staging, an agent can order professional photos of the property for the home’s listing.
Selling your property
When selling a home in Hollywood Hills, an agent will list their client’s property on a local MLS to boost its visibility and reach the most buyers. Your agent will conduct open houses and private tours to showcase all your home’s impressive features to prospective buyers. Upon receiving offers, your agent will help you evaluate offers and determine whether or not to counter them. After coming to an agreement, sellers can complete the closing steps.
Listing on the MLS
Your agent will list your home on the local MLS to get it seen and sold. Listing on the MLS makes the property available to buyers’ agents in the area, also trickling into sites like Realtor, Redfin, and Zillow. To market the listing to the widest audience, an agent will plan an open house, provide virtual tours for buyers who can’t attend in person, and schedule home showings.
Cash vs. traditional offers
After a home is listed, sellers will begin receiving offers from interested buyers. Many buyers will make traditional offers with mortgage financing, while others may make cash offers. Typically, cash offers are seen as more desirable because a buyer already has the funding they need and doesn’t need to complete closing steps like a home appraisal. However, traditional offers are typically higher priced and can give sellers more time to pack up their belongings and finalize a home purchase of their own.
Closing steps
Buyers and sellers who reach an agreement must complete the home transaction through the closing process. During this time, a buyer finalizes a mortgage by ordering a home inspection and appraisal. If issues arise with either step, a seller may have to reenter negotiations. Sellers should also prepare for closing costs, which average 5 to 6% of a home’s final price in California.
Frequently asked questions about selling your home
It’s natural for those selling a home in Hollywood Hills to have plenty of questions about the process, whether they’re a first-time seller or highly experienced in the real estate journey. Here are a few answers to some commonly asked questions.
How can I get the highest offers?
There are a few ways to increase the selling price of a home. Sellers should try listing during seller’s market conditions or when there isn’t enough housing inventory to meet buyer demand. This drives prices up and gives sellers more bargaining power. Seasonality also impacts prices, with the traditional buying period starting in spring. Sellers can also make necessary repairs and high ROI improvements to their property to boost its value.
Can I sell my Hollywood Hills home without a Realtor?
Sellers can list their homes without a Realtor, but they may encounter some setbacks. Most homes listed as “FSBO” sell for less than those listed by agents. Often, sellers may overprice their properties, which can cause a listing to linger on the market. Sellers who do everything themselves also must take on a significant time commitment to prepare, market, negotiate, and close on a sale.
What if my home isn’t fully paid off?
Sellers can still list their properties even if they haven’t been paid off. In fact, it’s common for sellers to list their homes while still having some mortgage debt. As long as a seller has enough home equity built up, they can use a sale’s proceeds to pay off the remainder of their mortgage and closing costs. Sellers should keep this in mind when deciding to sell and setting a price with their agent.
Ready to sell your home?
Selling a home in
Hollywood Hills doesn’t have to be complicated. When you’re ready to list your home, contact experienced Realtor
Lorissa Singleton to guide you through the process. Lorissa has extensive resources and in-depth knowledge to help her clients prepare their properties and enjoy a streamlined, smoother sale. Get started today.
*Header photo courtesy of Shutterstock
