5 Mistakes to Avoid When Selling Your LA Home

Owning a slice of Los Angeles is a dream for many Californians. 

Who wouldn’t want to live in Tinseltown, where the beaches and mountains meet. And as home prices rose throughout the nation over the past two years, many homeowners used the opportunity to sell their homes and take a step up the property ownership ladder. 

But selling a house is an emotional process, and there are pitfalls sellers need to keep in mind. Especially as interest rates start rising and the bidding wars of the past two years start subsiding. If you are trying to sell a home fast in Los Angeles, you will want to avoid these mistakes in the selling process.

That is why the team at Prevu Real Estate prepared a list of mistakes to avoid when selling your home in Los Angeles, California.

Mistake #1: Forgetting to think through your reasons for selling

Whether it is your first or third home, selling a residence is an emotional time of change. 

Packing up years of memories and squaring away a sale can push folks to make decisions in the heat of the moment. This act is dangerous as buying or selling a home is one of the most expensive transactions a person engages in, and the last thing you want is seller's remorse. 

Home owners in LA have coveted property but must ask if they are truly ready to let go of their homes. Everyone has different reasons for selling. Some are upgrading to a new home, while others are moving to a different school district. You should meditate on your sale, asking yourself why you are selling and if now is the right time to list your home. 

To help discern your motives, you should put together a pros and cons list to understand why you want to sell and if you are ready. While some homeowners flip-flop if they wish to sell, others can be overzealous, rushing headfirst into listing their homes. 

You do not want to jump right into the market and should consult an expert real estate agent first. 

Mistake #2: Trying to sell a home without an agent 

Many experienced homeowners take on the task and successfully find qualified buyers to purchase their homes. 

There is no law requiring you to sell your LA home with the services of an agent. However, you will have to get high-res photos taken of your home, handle marketing solo, manage all the offers, and negotiate the transaction without an expert representing your best interests. 

Having someone representing your side of the exchange goes a long way, as your listing agent can represent you at the negotiating table to make sure you get an excellent deal for your beloved home. They can help you craft a marketing strategy by looking at recent sales to help you land at an optimal listing price.

Plus, they will put the work in to list your LA home on the multiple listing service, complete with high-quality photos and descriptions. They will also manage the open house process, which can be crushing for folks still emotionally attached to the home. Working with an agent means you don’t have to worry about managing the finer details of a deal. 

Yet, you should not settle and work with the first agent you meet. Make sure to speak with several agents to get a well-rounded sense of their skills, local knowledge, and if they are flexible with their commission rates. Steep rates are not set in stone and you can negotiate how much to pay in agent fees to help you save. Since agent commissions are the largest of the seller closing costs in Los Angeles, you should always negotiate them as low as possible.

Mistake #3: Showing a lived-in home

After years of owning a space, the home takes on a lived-in feeling. Familiar paths on the carpet get tread down, you grab a side of the door frame as you head out for your day, and there are some scuffs on the hardwood floor where you sit down for dinner each night.

These little things build up over time, and if you are selling your home, these blemishes can turn away interested buyers. It is easy to repaint tired cabinets and door frames and clean up smudges around the door handle. Make sure to extend your cleaning spree to the window sill and on top of crown moldings, as these areas can get messy over time. 

Buyers want to imagine their life in the space if they buy your house, so make sure to declutter the home of personal items. Open spaces and bright rooms invite imagination, so open up those curtains and pack away all your family photos. 

But the exterior of the home is just as important as it is the first thing people see when they come to tour your home.

Mistake #4: Forgetting about curb appeal 

First impressions go a long way in real estate, and this is especially true in Los Angeles. 

It is easy to get wrapped up in cleaning up the interior of your home, rehabbing old light fixtures, and fixing leaky faucets. Yet you do not want to forget about tidying up the front of your LA home. 

Not all homes have a front yard, but if you do have one, it pays to edge and mow the lawn before showing the property. You will wow a home buyer if they pull up and your hedges are neat, the driveway is power washed to bring new life back to that tired tarmac, and the siding is freshly cleaned. 

Planting flowers and putting down fresh mulch also helps your home stand out, so think about going to your local florist to find some perennials to plant out front. 

Mistake #5: Overpricing your home 

Putting a value on a home you spent valuable time in is tough, and it is even harder when the house is in the City of Angels. 

Plus, having all those memories attached to the property can make you overprice the home. As interest rates for mortgages continue to rise, fewer buyers will be lining up to purchase your property if the asking price is too steep. But you also do not want to price your home too low. Otherwise, you will lose out on a great deal and come down with a nasty case of seller's remorse. 

This situation is another moment when partnering with an agent helps you. Using historical sales info from the multiple listing service, your agent can help you discern the best listing price for your home. 

Interested in selling your house in Los Angeles? Learn how Prevu Real Estate can save you thousands in commission.

Prevu Real Estate, Inc. is a licensed real estate broker in California, license number 02134758.