Sell House Doctors House

How To Sell - House Doctors Channel4.com Text Only [ News | Film | Homes | Life | Entertainment | History | Science | Community | Shop ] | Sport | Culture | Cars | Money | Broadband | Learning | Health | Dating | Games ] [ Text Only: Homepage ] [ Graphical: Channel4 Homepage ] [an error occurred while processing this directive] page1 How To Sell House Doctors House doctors (also known as property presentation consultants, home stagers, house stylists…) offer professional help to people having problems selling their property. They'll give impartial advice on why your home isn't being snapped up and help with styling, or staging, your property in order to achieve a quick sale. There is evidence that house doctors really work. Their websites are full of stories of not only having helped people to sell within a short space of time, but of actually adding thousands of pounds onto the value of their property in the process. This is achieved with advice on tidying away clutter, repairing signs of wear and tear, carrying out necessary redecorating work, 'dressing' the property and how to hold a viewing. Where can I find one? Already massive in the US, house doctors are still very much a new idea in the UK. However, there are many small, local interior design or property renovation companies that offer a house doctoring service. The best way to find these is to look out for advertisements in your local paper. Some house doctors cover the nation as a whole: Property Presentation Services, Homestagers and The Final Touch are three of the most successful. What will it cost me? Daphne Leck of Property Presentation Services offers an obligation-free discussion in the first instance. Thereafter, the minimum fee is £250 for two visits, one before any work is done and one after. This includes a written report on each room and advice up to the point of selling, including how to choose an estate agent. PPS offer a consultation service: that is, they do not do the actual work themselves, but they can recommend and source materials and services. Home Stagers, run by interior designer Tina Jesson, is a UK-wide network of experts who have been trained and awarded an Open College Network-accredited professional certificate. Consultants offer services throughout the home ownership process. A Home Consultation costs £160 & includes a written report, online marketing and a 'Viewings Into Offers' guide. The Home Stagers website is content-rich and offers tips, free online advice and photo consultations. The Final Touch, run by interior designer Suzy Maas and estate agent Lottie Sanger, is London-based but will travel depending on the size of the project. They offer a written report after their initial visit, for which they charge £50 an hour. Should you choose to follow their advice, the couple then charge £450 a day plus VAT for two people's work re-presenting the property, including sourcing of all equipment and materials.

home equity lines of

Home Equity Lending Gaps in Texas The Texas Economy March 2003 "Texans need and deserve the right to take out home equity lines of credit.This simple change will pump $741 million back to Texas homeowners." -- Carole Keeton Strayhorn, Texas Comptroller Home Equity Lending Gaps in Texas The number of Texans with home equity loans has more than doubled since 1997 when changes in the Texas constitution made it easier for Texans to borrow against the equity they have in their homes. [1] Yet, Texans are still not taking as many home equity loans as residents in other states. In the traditional home equity lending market—the segment that involves a lump-sum payout of equity to be repaid over a set term—Texans seem to have caught up with the rest of the nation. Indeed, the estimated 6.4 percent of Texas home-owners with traditional home equity loans in 2001 is not only up considerably from 2.5 in 1997 but may well be higher than the average for the other 49 states of 5.7 percent (Figure 1). [2] This most likely reflects the fact that one portion of the home equity loan market—the home equity line of credit market—remains unavailable to Texans. An estimated $12.7 billion in higher-cost, non-tax-deductible loans that currently exist could be supplanted if home equity lines of credit were available and Texans used these financial options at the same rate as other consumers in the country. By taking advantage of a substantially untapped resource, Texas consumers could save $741 million annually using home equity lines of credit instead of other loans. These savings could be pumped into the Texas economy through lower interest rates and additional federal income tax deductions. The gains would be realized in the Texas economy if existing loans were merely paid off by homeowners through home equity lines of credit. This need not expand homeowners’ overall debt burden. Home Equity Lending in Texas For more than 160 years, access to the home equity that owners had built up in their residences was largely untapped. As a direct result of the Panic of 1837, Texas prohibited the forced sale of homesteads for all but a very limited number of reasons. When Texas became a state, these protections became part of the state constitution and effectively barred foreclosing on a person’s residence for reasons other than non-payment of taxes, the original mortgage or a home improvement loan. These same provisions also effectively barred tapping into home equity for purposes other than home improvement. But on November 4, 1997, Texas voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing more leeway in home equity lending and for reverse mortgages. [3] These loans became available to Texans in 1998, but some technical issues limited the availability of home equity loans for homesteads larger than one acre and from reverse mortgages. Subsequent amendments addressed these legal concerns. [4] Changes in the Texas Constitution expanded the conditions under which homeowners could obtain a traditional home equity loan. These closed-end loans extend for a specified length of time and generally require repayment of interest and principal in equal monthly installments. Interest rates on these loans are ordinarily fixed for the life of the loan. Growth in Home Equity Lending in Texas Since changing the Texas constitution to allow wider use of home equity loans, Texans have steadily increased their reliance on these loans. According to American Housing Survey (AHS) data on nine Texas metropolitan areas that cover 68 percent of Texas’ owner-occupied homes, only 2.5 percent of Texas homeowners had any form of home equity loan in 1997, substantially less than the 14.5 percent for all U.S. homeowners outside of Texas that same year. By 1999, the proportion of Texas homeowners with a home equity loan had risen to 4.5 percent. While this represents nearly a doubling of home equity loan usage in just two years, this was still slightly less than the estimated 5 percent rate for home equity loan usage in the nation and substantially less than the 12.9 percent estimated by the AHS that year for both home equity loans and lines of credit. By 2001, the proportion of Texas households with home equity loans had reached 6.4 percent. At this level, the usage in Texas actually exceeded the usage rate of fixed-term closed-end loans in the U.S., indicating that Texans may have reached the saturation point with traditional home equity loans. These loans typically are written for a set amount to be repaid in equal installments over a specified time, just like a traditional mortgage. Based on a survey conducted for the Comptroller of Public Accounts of home equity lenders in Texas, from 1998 to 2000, the amount of the average home equity loan was about $36,750. In 2001 and 2002, the average home equity loan jumped to more than $47,000. [5] Closing the Gap Although Texans’ reliance on home equity loans has grown substantially since the passage of the constitutional amendment, further gains may be unlikely. Other states’ average usage of 14 percent in 2001 included both traditional home equity loans and home equity lines of credit, financial instruments not now available to Texas homeowners. The possibility that the usage rate of traditional home equity loans in Texas exceeded the usage rate of similar loans in the nation probably indicates that without the home equity line of credit option, more homeowners are opting for the fixed term loans—their only other choice. During much of the 1990s, about 8 percent of U.S. homeowners had a home equity line of credit whereas about 5 percent of homeowners had a traditional loan. [6] In 2001, AHS data indicated an estimated 8.4 percent of homeowners had a home equity line of credit (HELOC) and 5.7 percent had traditional home equity loans. This newer form of home equity lending has become the preferred choice by homeowners in other states. A HELOC is a revolving account that permits borrowing from time to time, at the account holder’s discretion, up to a set credit limit. HELOCs also typically have more flexible repayment schedules than traditional home equity loans and have a variable interest rate. Most consumers think home equity lines of credit are more convenient than traditional home equity loans. While about 40 percent of consumers cited the tax advantages of both types of home equity credit as an important consideration, 43 percent of HELOC users cited convenience of use as an advantage, compared with only 1 percent of those using the traditional home equity loans. [7] Many of the major lenders in Texas make HELOC loans to homeowners in other states. Their experiences underscore how attractive this option is to consumers. Figure 2 presents the percentage of the amount of home equity loans and lines of credit written in Georgia, Florida and California by three major Texas lenders. [8] About 88 percent of the consumers in these states choose HELOCs compared with about 12 percent choosing traditional home equity loans. Potential Economic Impact of HELOCs in Texas One approach to examining what expanded home equity lending might mean in Texas is to estimate what consumers would save if they had access to HELOCs. Three issues are crucial when estimating this impact: what savings could be expected from lower interest costs; how much would HELOCs lower federal income tax bills; and how large total borrowing might become. Underlying this assessment is the assumption that if Texans had access to HELOCs the total home equity usage in Texas would approach the U.S. average. This implies that consumer use of both home equity lines of credit and traditional loans would reach about 14 percent, 7.6 percentage points up from the 2001 level, which was 6.4 and consisted of only traditional home equity loans. The true economic value of HELOCs to consumers lies in low interest rates and as a deduction from federal income taxes. For example, recent data from February 2003 show that the average interest rate on credit card debt is 13.8 percent, the rate for new auto loans is 5.8 percent and on home equity lines of credit, 4.4 percent. [9] This implies that on a $1,000 loan, annual credit card interest charges would be $138 whereas these charges would amount to only $44 for the home equity line of credit. On $1,000 in outstanding credit card debt, conversion of this debt to a HELOC would save $94 in interest payments annually. But even this neglects the fact that HELOC interest costs are deductible from federal income taxes, whereas credit card interest charges are not deductible. Although each individual’s exact marginal tax rate paid depends on adjusted gross income, the National Bureau of Economic Research estimates that, on average, in 1999 interest deductions reduced income taxes 24.5 cents per dollar of interest paid. [10] This implies that, on average, the $44 in HELOC interest payments would generate an estimated $10.78 in federal income tax savings so that the total consumer savings per $1,000 in credit card debt replaced by HELOC would be $104.78 annually. Savings from other loans would be less dramatic. Based on current rates, car loans would cost $58 in interest charges per $1,000 borrowed, or only $14 more than HELOC. But tacking on the deductibility of HELOC raises this savings to $24.78 annually per $1,000 borrowed. The loans likely to be displaced by HELOC would be a mixture of credit card loans and other consumer loans such as car loans. According to Federal Reserve loan data, consumer debt nationwide at the end of 2002 was divided into $738.9 billion in revolving loans, of which credit card debt is a large part, and $1,017.9 billion in non-revolving loans. [11] Assuming Texas consumers have a similar debt profile, about 42 percent of Texas consumer debt would be in revolving credit and 58 percent in non-revolving. Based on these shares, the average consumer would save an estimated $58.38 in interest and tax payments per $1,000 owed by switching from other consumer credit sources to HELOC. [12] How much Texans could save depends on the volume of consumer loans displaced. Using 2001 commercial bank data to update national figures indicates that the traditional home equity loan market in the U.S. reached $352.7 billion, up from $267 billion in 1997. Considering Texas’ share of home equity loans and the average per loan value, Texans account for an estimated 8.4 percent of the U.S. market for traditional home equity loans. Based on this percentage and assuming that Texans would use both traditional and HELOC loans at the national rate, Texas consumers would exchange $12.7 billion in existing loans for HELOC. In doing so, Texas homeowners would save $741 million in interest charges and federal income taxes annually. This would be a modest level of savings. The Federal Reserve Board estimates that households spend about 8 percent of their disposable personal income servicing the debt on revolving loans. [13] The $741 million annual savings from increased use of HELOCs would be about 1.7 percent of the annual amount Texans spend on debt service for revolving loans. [14] Home Equity Delinquencies If Texas consumers relied more on home equity lines of credit and followed national trends, loan delinquencies would likely fall. Based on American Bankers Association data (Table 1), Texas averages fewer loan delinquencies for closed-end home equity loans than consumers at the national level. Loan delinquencies did rise in Texas from 1999 to 2001, but dropped off in 2002. Table 1: Texas Home Equity Delinquency Rates Compared to All Other States Home Equity Delinquency Rates and All States First Mortgage Delinquency Rates* Closed-End** Home Equity Loans(1) Home Equity Lines of Credit(1) All States - First Mortgages(2) Texas All States All States Conventional FHA VA 2002 0.99% 1.30% 0.59% 3.06% 11.55% 7.87% 2001 1.17 1.28 0.73 2.96 10.78 7.67 2000 0.88 1.20 0.75 2.50 9.10 6.80 1999 0.77 1.26 0.62 2.60 8.60 6.80 * Delinquency Rates are based on the number of Loans Past Due 30 Days or More as a Percentage of Loans Outstanding. ** "Closed End" includes home equity and second mortgages (but not home improvement). SOURCES (1)Home equity delinquency rates obtained from "Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin" published quarterly by American Bankers Association. (2)First mortgage delinquency rates obtained from "U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2001" and Mortgage Bankers Association of America "Quarterly Delinquency Surveys." But nationwide, loan delinquencies for lines of credit are slightly more than half the rates seen for closed end home equity loans. Based on this pattern, a shift towards using home equity lines of credit from traditional home equity loans should lower overall home equity delinquency rates. Compared with first mortgages, the delinquency rates for both home equity loans and lines of credit are substantially lower. Summary The use of home equity loans in Texas has risen dramatically following constitutional changes in Texas in 1997. Use of closed-end traditional home equity loans in Texas exceeds nationwide use. The fact that home equity lines of credit are not available in Texas contributes to a higher reliance on traditional home equity loans. But the strong consumer preference expressed for HELOCs in other states and consumer preference for their ease of use may indicate that continued expansion of lower interest, tax deductible home equity financing by consumers in Texas may slow without access to these loans. If Texans were to use home equity financing only up to the national average through HELOCs, lower interest payments and lower federal taxes would save Texas consumers $741 million. Making HELOCs available to Texas consumers would require passing another constitutional amendment and legislation proposing such amendments will likely be introduced during the current legislative session. If the nature of consumer safeguards and other requirements on lending institutions in Texas making HELOC loans were significantly more restrictive than national practices, interest rates on these loans in Texas could be higher than national rates, and the economic impacts less. Data Collection While banking and finance are two of the most heavily regulated industries, this level of scrutiny does not always result in the availability of detailed information. Since 1987, banks and finance companies have reported home equity lines of credit under receivables on quarterly Call Reports and since 1991 have also separately reported their holdings of traditional closed-end home equity loans. Mutual savings banks also report these data on Federal Reserve Board Call Reports. Other segments of the financial industry report this information to varying degrees. Savings and loan associations and federal saving banks report credit line receivables on Call Reports, but they do not separate home equity loans from first mortgages. Since June 1996, finance companies have reported commercial and residential mortgages separately but do not distinguish between loans under lines of credit and traditional loans. Credit union data is available on both types of home equity debt from the Credit Union National Association. At the national level, some data track the degree to which consumers utilize the various home equity loan alternatives. Every two years the Federal Reserve Board surveys consumers’ use of credit. This data, while instructive on overall trends and the use of home equity loans and lines of credit, does not contain information about practices in particular states. Moreover, much of the state-specific data collected from financial institutions is available primarily for the location of the financial institution involved, and not where the loan was made. Where this data are available, coverage by type of financing (home equity loan versus line of credit) is limited. The Texas-specific data in this analysis is derived largely from two sources. First, the U.S. Bureau of the Census surveys about 60,000 Americans every two years about housing conditions. This survey includes questions about the usage of home equity loans, but only the most recent survey, from 2001, elicits responses on traditional home equity loans separately from home equity lines of credit. Because this survey is national, there is only partial coverage of Texas. Specifically, publicly available data from the survey identifies only responses coming from nine metropolitan areas in Texas. Although the sample does contain responses from non-metropolitan areas, these are not identified by state. The Census survey covers about 68.2 percent of the Texas population. The second source of data is internal surveys of lending activity conducted by lending institutions doing business in Texas. These institutions cover more than 10 percent of the Texas market for commercial financial institutions and financial companies. These data are used to identify the potential to expand home equity lending in Texas if lines of credit became available. Endnotes [1] In 1997 and before, availability of home equity loans in Texas was limited to home improvement loans, loans to pay outstanding taxes and loans allowing one spouse to “buy out” another in the case of divorce. Such loans were typically known as a second lien against the property. Homeowners could not secure a loan backed by the equity in their home and use the proceeds of the loan for purposes other than those specified in law. Outside of Texas, using home equity loan proceeds for whatever purpose and even the more flexible home equity line of credit (a revolving line of credit secured by home equity) have been widely available for years. [2] The tentative nature of this statement stems from what seems to be respondent confusion to the American Housing Survey (AHS). In the 2001 AHS, 14 Texas households identified themselves as having a home equity line of credit in 2001. Since these lines of credit currently cannot be offered in Texas, the most likely explanation for this is that these respondents misunderstood the “line of credit” option in the survey as describing the “draw down” feature of a home improvement loan during construction when, in fact, these instances were almost certainly traditional “closed end” loans. Placing these responses in that category indicates that 6.4 percent of the homeowners in the survey in Texas had a closed-end home equity loan as compared to only 5.7 percent in states outside of Texas. [3] House Joint Resolution 31 (HJR 31) passed by the 1997 Legislature that, upon passage, became effective January 1, 1998. [4] On November 2, 1999, Texas voters approved constitutional amendments proposed by the 1999 Legislature to address these problems, Senate Joint Resolutions 12 and 22 (SJR 12 and 22). [5] Data submitted by lenders in early 2003. For number and amount of loans in Texas, the survey included five large Texas lenders. [6] Glenn B. Canner, Thomas A. Durkin and Charles A. Luckett, “Recent Developments in Home Equity Lending,” Federal Reserve Bulletin, April 1998, p. 243. [7] Canner, Durkin and Luckett, pp. 241- 251. [8] From data submitted by lenders. Together these three lenders serve more than 10 percent of the commercial banking market in Texas. [9] These rates and those of HELOCs are from http://www.bankrate.com/ on February 18, 2003. The credit card rate is for a standard card (not gold or platinum) at a fixed annual rate. The auto loan figure refers to a 48-month loan for a new car. The HELOC rate is for a $10,000 or minimum amount. [10] http://www.nber.org/~taxsim/mrates/mrates2.html , February 20, 2003. [11] Federal Reserve Board Statistical Release, G.19, Consumer Credit, February 7, 2003. http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/ . [12] This is a fairly conservative assessment on two points. First it assumes that consumers would replace current borrowing in proportion to the amount borrowed of each type without consideration of the interest rates charged for each type of borrowing. A more rational approach would be to replace all of the most costly borrowing first. Secondly, new car financing rates are among the lowest cost loans available and this probably underestimates the interest costs of non-revolving loans. [13] http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/housedebt/default.htm , February 19,2003. [14] Disposable personal income in Texas is estimated to be $535.2 billion in 2001. Carole Keeton Strayhorn Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Window on State Government Contact Us Privacy and Security Policy

Selling Home & Garden

10 Steps to Take Before You Sell Your House - Home Selling  You are here: About > Home & Garden > Home Buying / Selling > How To Sell a House > 10 Steps to Take Before You Sell Your House - Home Selling Home & Garden Home Buying / Selling Essentials 10 Things Home Buyers Shouldn't Do Best Tips for First Time Home Buyers "Must-Do" Tasks Before You Sell How to Buy a Home, Step by Step For Sale by Owner Advice Articles & Resources How To Buy a Home How To Sell a House Celebrity & Historic Credit Reports & Scores Design & Remodel Home Maintenance Inspections & Appraisals Investing & Foreclosures Modular & Manufactured Mold, Radon, Lead, etc. Mortgage Advice Moving & Relocation Real Estate Careers Real Estate For Sale Vacation Homes Buyer's Guide Before You Buy Top Picks Home Buying Books Foreclosure Books Mortgage Books Product Reviews Forums Help FREE Newsletter Sign Up Now for the Home Buying / Selling newsletter! See Online Courses   Search Home Buying / Selling Stay up to date! Email to a friend Print this page More Home Selling Articles Understanding Material Facts and Property Disclosures Get Ready for Your Home Inspection Should You Buy a Home Warranty? More Home Selling Resources How to Read the HUD-1 Settlement Statement Getting the House Ready to Sell How To Measure Your Square Footage Recent Discussions Excellent credit, no savings- help!! Buying an out of state home ? Re-financing... Related Blogs Mortgage Fraud Blog The Real Estate Blog The Money Pit Most Popular Modular and Manufactured Homes Finding Your Best Place to ... Home Buying Don'ts First Time Home Buyer Tips Before You Sell Your Home What's Hot Coping with Unethical People How To Buy Land Real Estate Appraisal Before You Buy a Log Home Package Home Buying / Selling - GuideReviews Related Topics Home Repair Architecture Credit / Debt Management Housekeeping Landscaping 10 Important Steps to Take Before You Sell Your House From Janet Wickell , Your Guide to Home Buying / Selling . FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now! Essential Home Selling Preparations The home selling process differs from state to state, but there are some important steps that most home sellers should take before listing a house with an agent or selling it for sale by owner. Every bit of prep work you do helps you get the most return from your investment. 1. Get Pre-Approved for a Home Loan I've known sellers who signed a contract to sell their house before they knew if they were qualified to buy another. Either their financial circumstances had changed since their last purchase, and they could no longer qualify for a loan, or they weren't able to sell at a price that allowed them to buy the type of replacement house they wanted. They ended up renting or buying something that was far from ideal. Before you decide to sell the house, get pre-approved by a lender you trust and research the housing market in the area where you wish to live so that you have a good idea how much it will take to buy a replacement. Start looking for two types of real estate: houses that seem to match the one you'd like to buy and houses that are similar to your current home. How do the two categories compare in price? Can you handle the difference if you're planning a step up? Mortgage Helpers: Are You Pre-Approved for a Mortgage? And to compare for-sale homes to your own, learn how to Measure Residential Square Footage . 2. Check Your Mortgage Payoff Call your lender to check the payoff for your current home mortgage. You'll need the figure to complete Step 6. 3. Determine How Much Your House Is Worth Determine your home's fair market value. Real estate agents will usually help you determine value as a courtesy, but you might take it a step further and order an appraisal . 4. Estimate Your Costs to Sell Real estate commission if you use an agency to sell. Advertising costs, signs, other fees if you plan to sell by owner. Attorney, closing agent and other professional fees. Excise tax for the sale. Prorated costs for your share of annual expenses, such as property taxes, home owner association fees, and fuel tank rentals. Any other fees typically paid by the seller in your area (surveys, inspections, etc.). Real estate agents deal with transactions every day and can give you a very close estimate of seller closing costs. 5. Estimate Costs to Buy a New Home Calculate moving expenses, loan costs, downpayment, home inspections, title work and title policy, paying for a new hazard insurance policy--all expenses related to buying a home. Your lender should give you a disclosure of estimated costs when you apply for loan pre-approval. 6. Calculate Your Estimated Proceeds Deduct your mortgage payoff from your home's fair market value. Deduct your costs to sell from the remainder to get an estimate of the proceeds you will be paid at closing. Will your closing proceeds cover your costs to buy a new home? If not, do you have cash or other funding to make up the difference? 7. Make Necessary Repairs Make all needed repairs unless you want the house to be regarded as a fixer-upper. I'm not referring to cosmetic updates--just items in need of repair. Anything that's obviously broken gives potential buyers a reason to offer you a lower price, especially if it's one of several repair hot spots that worry buyers the most. 8. Get the House Ready to Show Most houses need at least a little spiffing up before they are shown to potential buyers. Great curb appeal , fresh paint indoors (and sometimes out), organized closets and cabinets, sparkling clean windows and appliances and a clutter-free look are essential if you want the house to appeal to buyers. Be sure to avoid the things buyers hate most about houses. 9. Get Psyched Up to Let People In If you're listing with a real estate agent, she'll ask you to leave when the house is shown. Why? Because lurking sellers make buyers nervous--they don't feel comfortable inspecting the house when they feel they are intruding in your personal space. Unless there's a valid reason for it, don't ask your agent to be present for all showings, because that requirement can be the kiss of death for showing activity. Other agents want privacy with their buyers and they don't usually have time to work around your agent's schedule. Make the house accessible. That means it should always be ready to show. Many agents won't bother showing a house that takes 24 hours to get into. 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Real-Estate-Agents.com: Directory of Agents in US / Canada Real-Estate-Agents.com Find Real Estate Agents in the US and Canada HOME || Contact Us Directory of Real Estate Agents This site is a "no bells, no whistles" directory of links to real estate agents in the US and Canada. Somewhere in here is the house or property of your dreams! It's our goal to list more agents than any other directory, both residential or commercial. If you know an agent who would like to be added, please navigate to the regional listings and look for the "Add your Agency" link near the bottom of the page. We hope our listings help your real estate search, but please note that local real estate agents we list are responsible for their own websites and their own business practices. REAL ESTATE AGENTS: UNITED STATES Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Tips and Articles REAL ESTATE AGENTS: CANADA Alberta British Columbia Manitoba New Brunswick Newfoundland Nunavut NWT Yukon Nova Scotia Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan REAL ESTATE AGENTS: OTHER Europe Other Areas BACK to TOP Shopping | Privacy | Contact Us

Sell House

AutoTrader.com - How to Sell Your Car Home > Research > How to Sell Your Car How to Sell Your Car Why should I sell my car instead of trading it in? It's simple—to boost your profit. Sell it yourself, and you get a higher value out of your car. Depending on the age and condition of your car, you can pocket an extra $1,000 to $2,000 or more. If you have a late-model vehicle, you stand to make much more. Just think of it as cutting the middle man out. If you trade your car in, the dealer has to pay to clean it, advertise it and sell it while making a comfortable profit. Your lower trade-in reflects that. Besides, with today's online resources, selling your car is easier than ever. Find out all you need to know to put your car up for sale, and then list it at a less expensive price than traditional printed classified listings. Plus, you reach more buyers in your area—and across the country. Place Your Ad Today Get a CARFAX Vehicle History Report Provide buyer assurance. Check your vehicle's history before you sell. Enter VIN Find Info on Specific Models Get the details on your old car before you advertise. Find out options, standard features, safety and more. What are my first steps? Selling your car yourself can be rewarding, especially with a little guidance. We've come up with a few tips to make the experience easier and to help you get the best price for your car. View Hide Set a competitive price A good place to start is determining the market value of your car. Check out our used-car values page to find out what your car is worth. You'll want to price competitively in your local market-look at our online ads in your area to see what used cars similar to yours are being sold for. If you're open to negotiation, determine the least amount you will accept. Based on that amount, you may want to create some cushion in your price—$500 is a good minimum. Remember, buyers are looking at the same online pricing guides, so if your price is close to or lower than the price they found, your car could be that much more appealing. Once you set your price, consider using the proper ad lingo to make your point: Inserting "or best offer" (OBO) or "asking price" signals you'll consider an offer lower than the stated price. You may get more responses. Stating your price is "firm" signals that you're sticking to your price. View Hide Get your car ready Appearance is everything. That means you should thoroughly clean your car, inside and out. And consider taking care of any minor maintenance issues. Here's a laundry list of things you can do to improve your car's appearance: Wash, wax and vacuum your car. Wipe down the dashboard and other surfaces. Gloss up the tires and polish the wheels. Clean all glass inside and out, including mirrors. Clean out any junk from inside your car and the trunk. Replace any burnt lights or fuses. Top off the fluids. View Hide Gather your car's records Smart car shoppers want to know how well maintained your vehicle is and will ask for maintenance records. A presentable maintenance log with all of your receipts, especially oil changes, can be a powerful selling tool. Consider collecting the receipts you have and creating a maintenance log. If you know you had something done but can't find the receipt, log it anyway. Warranty receipts are especially important. If you've recently replaced your tires or battery, present the warranty to the buyer. View Hide Purchase a vehicle history report You can put buyers at ease by showing a copy of your car's vehicle history report . One of the biggest fears of used-car buyers is unwittingly buying a car that has been in a wreck. A vehicle history report reveals if a car was ever wrecked, whether the odometer was rolled back and other costly problems. Presenting your maintenance records and a clean vehicle history report instills confidence in buyers—it could make the sale! How do I advertise my car? Your best bet is to place an online ad . Think about it this way: how many newspaper readers are looking to buy a car? Compare that to the number of people visiting auto websites like this one looking to buy a car now. You'll also get more sophisticated options, like editing tools and more space to show off your car. Here are some surefire bets to bring you more responses. View Hide Post quality photos Although photos are not required for listing your car online, they are a key selling tool. You have a far greater chance of buyers clicking on your Search Results Listing if you have photos. In fact, 85% of buyers look for listings with photos in their initial search. You don't need to have a digital camera to post photos. Just take your traditional film to your local photo-processing lab and ask for a photo CD. You can easily upload photos from the CD to your ad. Or, you can turn your prints into digital pictures with a scanner. Before you point and shoot, remember these guidelines: Photograph your car in daylight. Avoid reflections and shadows from the sun and trees. Photograph your car at a front-side angle to achieve a good view of the entire car. Park your car against a flattering backdrop. Make sure your car is clean and neat in appearance. If you post multiple photos, photograph the interior and any special features about your car, such as specialty tires and wheels. View Hide Give details buyers will respond to Another benefit of advertising online is providing a complete description of your car. You get to give buyers those extra details that grab their attention. In your AutoTrader.com ad, you will list your car's basic details and options installed. With that important information already out of the way, you can focus on making your description enticing. Keep in mind the first 150 characters of your description will show on your Search Results Listing. Put your most important details first, so buyers see them right away. Consider giving some of the following details: Appeal to a buyer's lifestyle. Ex. Van—"great family car," economy car—"excellent gas mileage makes it a great commuter car," truck—"a dependable work truck." Use key phrases that typically signal you've taken care of your car, like "one owner," "kept in garage" and "maintenance records available." But do be honest! Mention any non-standard modifications and improvements, such as stereo, speakers and specialty wheels. List any recent replacements, like new tires or battery. View Hide Be prepared to field inquiries Once you place your ad, be ready to answer questions. Keep a list of basic facts about your car near the phone and computer. Print out the online sources that show your car's market value. Buyers are making a big decision, so try to answer every question honestly and openly. You'll save yourself time instead of making unnecessary appointments. Make appointments for a specific time, rather than allowing a buyer to show "sometime after work." It increases the chances of the buyer making it, and it doesn't waste your time. If you feel uncomfortable with a buyer coming to your house, arrange to meet in a populated, well-lit area. How do I close the deal? You've done your homework. Now it's time to sell your car. With a little preparation and patience, you should do just fine. View Hide Show your car to interested buyers Once you make an appointment, a buyer will most likely want to take your car for a spin. Before the test-drive, remember to: Ask to see a valid driver's license and proof of insurance. Let the buyer drive, but you navigate. Have a planned route in mind that allows the buyer to experience different driving conditions. If a buyer is very interested and wants you to hold the car, ask for a deposit and specify that it's only for a certain amount of time. Also, some buyers may want to have the car inspected by their mechanic. This is a reasonable request, but it's up to you how you want to handle it. View Hide Negotiate a fair price By now, you know what your car is worth, and you know what you're willing to accept. Prepare yourself with possible responses when a buyer begins to negotiate. For example: If a buyer mentions a scratch or ding, say it's normal wear and tear and that it's accounted for in the depreciated market value. If a buyer makes an offer lower than your asking price, counter offer. Never seem too eager to lower your price. And don't budge beyond your minimum. If a buyer shows you a mechanic's receipt for repairs needed on your car, take a look at the repairs. If they're warranted, consider reducing the price based on the amount needed for the repairs. If you advertised that your car is being sold "as is," then simply refer to your ad. View Hide Finalize the sale Once you settle on a price, accept only cash or a cashier's check before you sign over the title. And make sure the check has cleared at the issuing bank. Be suspicious of any buyer who offers a complicated payment arrangement that involves overpayment with a refund. This is often a sign of fraud. To learn more about spotting a scam, read our fraud awareness tips . You should have a bill of sale ready for both parties. A bill of sale is a sales receipt that shows transfer of ownership to the buyer and contains both parties' contact information, details about the car, the agreed upon sell price and the odometer reading. To find a bill of sale, your state motor vehicle website should offer a detailed form. If not, try an office supply store for a generic form that you can add to if needed. Also, check with your state motor vehicle website to find out what the requirements are to transfer the title to the new owner. Generally, you will have to sign and date the title before turning it over to the buyer. Notifying your local motor vehicle office of the transaction and ensuring the title is correctly transferred will prevent you from being liable for any accidents. If you still owe money on the car and a lending institution is holding the title, you can finish the sale with the buyer at the offices of the lender. Once you have the money and the loan has been paid off, sign the title to the buyer. If the bank is out of state, you can go with the buyer to the motor vehicle office and get a temporary operating permit based on the bill of sale. Once you pay off the balance of the loan with the money from your car sale, you'll receive the title. Sign it over to the new owner and the transaction is complete. 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