Columbus OH Home Selling FAQs

Selling a home is a big deal. It’s not as simple as selling the things you don’t use anymore online. Aside from the emotional difficulties, selling a home can be a complicated process.

There are bound to be many questions when thinking about selling a home in Columbus. We’re taking the home selling process head-on and answering your questions.

At the Rita Boswell Group, we want you to be an informed home seller. We want you to be ready for the realities of selling a home you have loved and lived in.

Below you will find the most common home selling questions and answers. We cover pricing and home staging to closing costs and everything in between. If you don’t see your question, we hope you will reach out to Realtor Rita Boswell at 614-830-9767 to get the information you need.

🔢What Are The Steps To Selling A Home?

Every home sale is different, but there is a general chain of events when selling a home in Columbus. The first and most important step is to hire an experienced real estate agent to guide your home sale to a successful, profitable close. Assuming you choose a great agent, they will handle the heavy lifting of a home sale to make it as easy and stress free for you as possible. The right agent will help with pricing, home staging, marketing, offers, and closing.

⚖Should I Sell Or Rent My Home In Central Ohio?

If you’re in the early stages of considering a home sale, or your home has been sitting on the market for awhile, you may be wondering if it is better to sell your home or rent it out. Some Central Ohio home owners consider turning a home into a rental property as an investment.

There’s not a simple yes or no answer to this question. The answer really depends on your situation. There are pros and cons for both. You will need to consider financial factors such as taxes and the costs of property management versus selling the home.

How Do I Find Out How Much Homes In My Area Are Selling For?

This is a great question! If you’re thinking about selling your home and you want to get a general idea of how much homes near you are selling for, start by browsing recent home sales in your community. The link below will show you step by step how to view recently sold homes in your Central Ohio neighborhood.

💸How Much Does It Cost To Sell A Home In Columbus?

The cost of selling a home will vary by state and county. There are also a number of different expenses to consider including home staging, repairs, and agent commissions.

Read our detailed list of Central Ohio home selling costs to determine how much it will cost to sell your home. To find out how much you could net when selling your home, contact Columbus OH Realtor Rita Boswell at 614-830-9767.

How Much Are Closing Costs in Central Ohio?

Generally, the closing costs are paid by the home buyer. However, it is common for home buyers to request during negotiations that home sellers pay closing costs. Should you agree to pay closing costs, it may be helpful to know what they include and how much they are in the Columbus area.

💼Should I Hire An Agent or Sell Myself?

When a homeowner starts thinking about selling their home, one of the first things they consider is whether or not to hire a real estate agent to sell their home. This is especially true if homes nearby appear to be selling easily. The truth is, selling one’s own home is rarely a good idea. There are so many variables and ways for it to go sideways. Plus, there are numerous legal issues to consider when selling a home. Homeowners can end up costing themselves a lot of time and money by trying to sell a home without any guidance from a professional. Read more about selling a home yourself versus hiring a real estate professional.

🙋How Do I Choose A Real Estate Agent?

Start by asking people you trust to refer you to a great Realtor. Next, look up the agents online to find out if they have the experience to help you. Read agents’ reviews to make sure they have an excellent reputation. Once you have a short list of candidates, contact them to schedule appointments.

If you will be listing a home, ask the agents what they will do to sell your home as quickly as possible for as much money as possible. For instance, a great agent will help you prepare and stage your home, have your home professionally photographed, and be able to get your listing in front of potential buyers using a variety of methods.

If you are buying a home, it is important that the agent really listens to your needs and works to find the right home for you.

🤷‍♂️Can I Use My Home’s “Zestimate” To Set The Price

This one is easy. No. You should never use Zillow’s Zestimate (home value estimate) to price your home in Central Ohio. The Zestimate is known for being inaccurate and changeable. Your home’s Zestimate is likely way too high or way too low.

Pricing your home accurately is one of the most important factors to a successful home sale. If you try to sell a home at too high a price, your home will sit on the market. If you set the price too low, you may sell your home quickly, but you will not make as much money as you could have.

How Do I Sell A Home While Buying Another Home?

Maybe you need something bigger, or maybe you need something smaller. Whatever the reason, you need to sell your current home and also buy another home. Thinking about the logistics of buying and selling at the same time can often be a cause of anxiety to home sellers. But, rest assured people do buy and sell at the same time, and there are processes to help you through the transition.

The short answer to How To Buy & Sell a Home At The Same Time is with the help of mortgage and real estate professionals. A mortgage professional will help you determine if you can buy your next home first and then sell (easiest), or if you will have to sell first and then buy. If you can buy your next home before you sell, a mortgage professional will tell you about the resources that can help you do that. If you have to sell your current home first, an experienced Realtor will be able to help strategies to make the process as easy as possible.

How To Sell A House While Still Living In It

For one reason or another, you find that you will have to sell your home while living there. At first, this may seem like a daunting pain in the neck (and it can be), however when done right, living in the home while you sell it can be a benefit to you. After all, home buyers often find it difficult to imagine how furniture will fit or how rooms can be used when a house is empty.

The key to selling a house you live in is to prepare ahead of time, and to keep the home looking show ready. This can be a challenge, but focusing on preparation can help your home sell much faster.

Should I Stage My Home?

Absolutely! Real estate agents know that home staging makes a big difference when listing a home for sale in Columbus. Since most home buyers begin their search online, the photos of your home need to show a home that is clean and staged. Buyers have a difficult time imagining themselves living in the homes they look at. As a home seller, you can help buyers see themselves in your home with staging.

🔐How Do I Protect My Home While I Sell It?

While you have your home for sale, it could be a target. It’s important to safeguard your family, your stuff, and your identity. After all, strangers will be coming through your home. Most of them will be actual home buyers. However, it is possible that someone could pretend to be a buyer but actually be a thief.

We have first hand experience dealing with this, so we have some tips for home sellers to protect themselves. The main way to protect small valuables and your identity (the easiest things to steal during an open house or home showing) are to secure valuables. This includes jewelry, cash, prescription drugs, keys, and mail such as bills that a person could use to steal your identity. Invest in a safe with a combination to put items in, and/or have a bin that you can put items in and take with you before a showing. Read More Ways To Secure Your Home While Selling It

How Do I Deal With Last Minute Showings?

If you’re going to be selling a home while living in it, you will have last minute showing requests. It’s important to try to be as accommodating to home showing requests as possible, because every home showing could be the one that brings an offer on your home.

Dealing with last minute showings can be very stressful, but there are ways to reduce the stress. First, talk with your agent about your schedule and let them know if there is a time you absolutely cannot have home showings. Second, clean, declutter, and stage your home before you list it. Taking the time and effort to properly prepare your home will make showings so much easier. Third, put a plan in place for getting your home show ready within an hour or less. We have a plan and checklist in the link below.

What To Do With Multiple Offers

For home sellers, receiving multiple offers is great! Getting multiple offers gives you options and leverage to get the best price and terms when selling your home. But, how do you choose which offer to accept?

This may seem like a no-brainer, and the highest offer may feel like the obvious choice. However, there are other things to consider.

For instance, do all buyers have pre-approval letters? Buyers that don’t have their finances in order may not actually be able to buy your home, making their higher offer worthless.

It’s important to weigh all terms in an offer and to choose the one that will hopefully lead to a successful closing with the best outcome for you as the seller. This is one of the many reasons to work with a local real estate expert. An experienced Realtor will have the knowledge and expertise to determine which offer is better without relying solely on price.

When Is It Time To Take A House Off The Market?

There are a number of good reasons to take a house off the market. For instance, circumstances can arise that make it necessary to stay in the home. Or, perhaps the home isn’t selling due to price, the market, or the condition of the home. If your home has been on the market for 30 days or more and you haven’t had many showings, price is the most likely culprit. You may need to take the home off the market and relist the home later at a lower price.

🔻When To Reduce The Price Of A Home

Pricing a home correctly is art and science. Experienced real estate agents do their homework when pricing a home. They look at similar homes that have sold nearby, as well as homes in the neighborhood that are for sale.

A lot of information goes into accurately determining the price of a home including the condition, features, amenities, type of lot, lot size, and more.

When these things are NOT taken into account, the listing price can be too high. How do you know if your listing price is too high? Usually the clear giveaway is that there is little to no interest in your home.

If a home is priced correctly, buyers WILL want to see the home. Even if they ultimately decide it isn’t the one for them, they will still schedule showings.

For most homes, it is evident within the first two weeks if the price is too high. If you have gone 30 days or more with few showings and no offers, it’s time to reduce the price. If you need to sell fast, you may need to be more aggressive with your price reductions.

Other things that can force you to lower the price of your home for sale can be needed repairs or improvements, market shifts, and a low appraisal.