If you are preparing to sell your house, you need to be honest with yourself and others. That way, you can increase the likelihood of a fast, profitable home selling experience.

Ultimately, it pays to be an honest home seller for a number of reasons, including:

1. You can establish a competitive price for your house.

It is important to understand that what your house is worth today is unlikely to match what you paid for it, regardless of when you bought your home. Fortunately, an honest home seller is realistic about his or her house's value and can plan accordingly.

Generally, an honest home seller will allocate the necessary time and resources to conduct a home appraisal. Because with an appraisal report in hand, this home seller can establish a competitive price for his or her house based on actionable data.

2. You can identify home problems before a buyer does.

If a home seller tries to hide home problems from a buyer, the consequences could be significant. In fact, a seller may put a potential home sale in jeopardy if he or she fails to be forthright and honest with buyers from the get-go.

For example, consider what might happen if a buyer submits an offer on a house and discovers myriad home problems during an inspection. In this scenario, a buyer may ask the seller to perform various home repairs or request a price reduction. Or, a buyer may choose to walk away from a home sale altogether.

As a home seller, it helps to take an honest approach to inform potential buyers about the condition of a house. If a residence requires assorted repairs, a seller may want to complete these repairs before listing his or her residence.

Comparatively, a seller can always include information about a home's condition in a house listing. If a seller does so, he or she can help buyers make an informed decision about a possible home purchase.

3. You can avoid rash decisions throughout the home selling journey.

An honest home seller usually is calm, cool and collected throughout the home selling journey. This seller understands the pros and cons of his or her house, and as such, can take an informed, logical approach to make the best-possible decisions.

Perhaps most important, an honest home seller is unafraid to receive negative feedback about his or her house. As a result, this seller may be better equipped than others to avoid rash decisions during the home selling journey.

There are many great reasons why a home seller should strive to be honest at each stage of the home selling cycle. Of course, if you need extra help as you sell your house, you may want to hire a real estate agent as well.

Typically, a real estate agent will provide honest, unbiased home selling recommendations and suggestions. He or she will even help you get your house ready for the real estate market. And with this housing market professional's support, a home seller can move closer to achieving his or her desired results.

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In a competitive housing market--like the one we have today--sellers are fielding numerous offers, especially in desirable urban and suburban hubs.

If you’re hoping to buy your first or second home, it can be tough to make offer after offer with no success.

However, there are some things you can do to help ensure your time house hunting is well-spent and to increase your chances of getting your offer accepted.

In today’s post, I’m going to give you a few tips on how to win a bidding war on your dream home.

All-cash offer

The most effective way to ensure that your offer is accepted is to make it in all cash. Cash offers drastically simplify the real estate transaction process, making things easier on the seller.

Most buyers, especially first-time buyers, won’t be able to make an all-cash offer on a home. However, people who are downsizing after their children moved out or are buying a retirement home may find themselves in the ideal financial situation to be able to leverage a cash offer.

If that sounds like you, consider a cash offer as part of your bidding strategy.

Waive the financing contingency

If you’re new to real estate contracts, you might be wondering what a contingency is. Essentially, a contingency is an action that needs to be completed before the contract becomes valid and the sale becomes final.

There are a number of different contingencies that can be found in a real estate contract. However, the most popular are for inspections, appraisals, and financing.

If you’re planning on taking out a mortgage to purchase the home, a financing contingency protects you in case you aren’t able to secure the mortgage in time. In other words, you’re not on the hook for a home you can’t pay for.

In some special situations, buyers might decide to waive the financing contingency, signaling to the sellers that there won’t be any hang-ups or delays from the buyer regarding financing the home.

Waiving this contingency comes with risks (namely, being responsible for coming up with the money to pay for the home). However, there are ways to safely waive a contingency.

The most common approach is to get a fully pre-approved letter from a lender. The important distinction here is that your mortgage needs to be pre-approved and underwritten (not just pre-qualified), otherwise you again risk getting denied the mortgage in the last moments before buying your home.

Crafting a personal letter

Sometimes all it takes to win a bidding war is to be the seller’s favorite candidate. Take the time to write them a personalized letter. Explain what you love about their home and why it’s perfect for your family.

Avoid talking about big changes you’ll make. Remember that they probably put a lot of time and money into the home, making it exactly the way they want it, and won’t appreciate you making huge plans to undo their work as soon as they’re out the door.

Using one, or a combination of, these three techniques, you’ll be able to give yourself an edge over the competition and increase your chances of getting your offer accepted.

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If you intend to sell your house, it pays to learn about the home selling process. By doing so, you can understand exactly what it takes to enjoy a seamless home selling experience.

Ultimately, there are three steps to sell your house:

1. Prep Your Residence

Take some time to learn about your residence's strengths and weaknesses. That way, you can identify any problem areas in your house and allocate the necessary time and resources to mitigate any issues that otherwise could slow down your home sale.

In many instances, it is helpful to schedule a home appraisal. During a home appraisal, a property expert will examine your residence both inside and out, as well as evaluate your home in relation to comparable houses in your city or town. Following a home appraisal, you will receive a property valuation that can help you establish a competitive initial asking price for your house.

Also, scrub the floors, clean the kitchen countertops and perform extensive home interior cleaning. And don't forget to mow the front lawn, trim the hedges and complete various home exterior maintenance and upgrades as well.

2. List Your House

Adding your house to the real estate market can be simple, especially if you work with a top-notch real estate agent.

Typically, a real estate agent will meet with you and learn about your home selling goals. He or she then will help you get your house ready for the real estate market, thereby increasing the likelihood that your residence will generate lots of interest from potential buyers.

A real estate agent is a must-have during the home selling journey. This housing market professional is unafraid to provide you with honest, unbiased home selling recommendations as you proceed along the home selling cycle. As a result, a real estate agent can help you optimize the value of your residence, regardless of the housing market's conditions.

3. Negotiate and Accept an Offer

Oftentimes, home showings and open houses will be held to showcase your residence to prospective buyers. If buyers like what they see, it may be only a matter of time before you receive multiple offers on your residence.

If you receive a home offer, you probably will have a short amount of time to decide whether to accept, reject or counter this proposal. Consider your options closely, and if you are not satisfied with an offer, you should not hesitate to walk away from the proposal.

On the other hand, if you receive an offer that you like, you can accept it. At this point, a buyer may perform a home inspection to further assess the condition of your house. And if the inspection goes well, it may be only a few weeks before all of the necessary paperwork is finalized and your closing date arrives.

The home selling cycle may seem like a long, arduous process at first. Fortunately, if you follow the aforementioned steps, you can reap the benefits of a fast, profitable home selling experience.

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