Selling your house is something you might only do a few times in your life. Unless you know a local Philadelphia real estate agent who will sell your house for free or at a significantly discounted commission, it can be a real pain and an expensive process.
You landed on this page about “How to sell your house by yourself in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania” likely for one of the following reasons:
- You have little or no equity in your house, making it difficult to afford a real estate agent’s commissions.
- You have equity but want to save money by selling the house yourself before hiring an agent.
- You’re in foreclosure (or heading that way) and need to sell fast without incurring thousands in agent commissions.
- You can’t wait the months it sometimes takes to sell a house in the Philadelphia area and want to try to sell it more quickly.
Regardless of your situation, there are ways to sell your house yourself in the local Philadelphia real estate market.
Since 2013, the housing sector has been experiencing a major recovery. Selling your house now can be profitable if done correctly. It’s about using smart marketing strategies and being realistic about your expectations.
This article provides guidelines to help you sell your Philadelphia area house yourself.
How To Sell Your House By Yourself in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Know the Philadelphia Real Estate Market Well
The first and most important step is doing market research on your neighborhood in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area. This involves visiting various home marketing sites (Zillow, Eppraisal, the Chase home value estimator, etc.), calling a real estate agent or two to see what your home is worth, or reading about various market pricing techniques. Proper homework on these issues will help you come up with the right price for your house and avoid certain selling mistakes.
If you don’t want to hassle with trying to determine your home value yourself, give us a call at 910-490-4268. We’ll provide an honest fair valuation of your house on the retail market (if you’re willing to wait 3-6+ months for the perfect retail buyer). Additionally, we can make you a fair all-cash offer on your house, giving you the option to sell quickly (we can close in as little as 7 days if you prefer).
Assess the Market
This step involves focusing on your neighborhood and similar houses. Are there many houses for sale in your neighborhood in Philadelphia? If so, what is the average listing price? Are there many foreclosures in your area? These factors can affect your house price.
Assess the House
To sell at a good price, your house should be in top condition. Identify unique characteristics and emphasize them during marketing. For example, in Philadelphia, a house with driveway parking may be more attractive to buyers than one with garage parking.
Also, does your house require repairs? Does it need repainting inside or out? How is the roof’s condition? Is the landscaping well-maintained? Is the house outdated? (e.g., popcorn ceilings). These factors can affect a buyer’s willingness to pay and, consequently, the price.
After all this, come up with an asking price for your Philadelphia home that is fair—not so high that it takes 12 months to sell, but attractive enough to generate interest and sell quickly.
Use Photos or Videos
Philadelphia buyers love media. Taking walk-through videos of the house and using them to advertise will help you reach a wider market. These videos are considered more transparent than photos, but photos are still more affordable and effective. Take great pictures of every room in the house and several angles of the exterior. Buyers want to see the house before visiting, and great photos can make a big difference in attracting the right buyer quickly.
Get Your House “Listed” on the Local Philadelphia MLS and Market It
You can find low-fee real estate brokers who will charge a few hundred dollars to list your house on the local Philadelphia MLS. This gets your house in front of all real estate agents quickly. Be prepared to pay buyers’ agents a 2-3% fee if you use their support to find a buyer.
Place ads in local newspapers, put up signs, and hold open houses.
All of This Sound Like a Lot of Work to Sell Your Philadelphia House Fast Yourself?
It can be.
Many Philadelphia house sellers think they’re saving money and time by marketing the house themselves, but in the end, it may cost them more.
When you sell your own house, consider the following:
- If you’re not a good marketer or aren’t ready to spend a lot of time marketing your house, selling it yourself may not be the best option.
- If you don’t prepare the house and marketing materials well and don’t build value in buyers’ minds, you might sell for 3-8% less than an experienced marketer could.
- Many sellers overlook holding and opportunity costs. Every month your house doesn’t sell means another mortgage payment, tax payment, insurance, utilities, etc. For example, if your mortgage payment is $1,500/mo and $1,300 of that is interest, taking 7 months to sell costs you an extra $9,100 (not including taxes and insurance).
Would it make sense to provide a buyer a discounted price today to close quickly and move on? It’s something to consider.
If you’d rather not deal with the hassle of selling your Philadelphia house yourself and would prefer to sell quickly for a fair price without paying any commissions or fees, Mike’s Cash for Homes can help.
We buy local Philadelphia, Pennsylvania houses and can make you a fair, NO OBLIGATION, and NO HASSLE cash offer. We can close quickly (in as little as 7 days if needed), saving you thousands of dollars compared to trying to sell the house yourself and waiting for months.
Also, when we buy local Philadelphia houses, we handle all necessary repairs (at our expense), so you don’t have to worry about that.