Every homeowner dreams of selling their property quickly, at the highest price, saving the most money, and with minimal stress. The recent tale of an owner in Spring Valley, CA, highlights how the clearest path to such success now begins somewhere that might surprise you.
The best news is it isn't just California home sellers that stand to gain -- homeowners everywhere need to be on high alert for this new home-selling hack. Here's what you need to learn about the selling process from this one real estate transaction.
Selling Quickly above List Price IS Possible in a Tricky Market -- And You Can Even Save Money
Summer 2023 has proved to be a challenging period for selling a house. While home prices have remained high, interest rates are even higher, so not many folks have found themselves motivated to sell. (Even for a house in California the pool of potential buyers can be limited, due to those aforementioned mortgage rates). That said, life circumstances often necessitate a home sale.
This was the exact scenario facing the homeowner at 2257 Casa Alta. Needing to relocate out of the Golden State, Matthew Jope had no choice but to sell his house in the Sweetwater Village suburb of San Diego.
Despite potentially difficult circumstances, this owner was able to achieve an extremely impressive home sale. In fewer than three weeks on the market, it sold above asking price -- turning a nice profit for the owner on his original investment purchased during the pandemic. Plus, one additional trick helped him save over $12,000. Let's take a look at how he was able to do that, and break down the sale details.
A Successful Sale Begins at TrueParity
Like many tasks these days, the first step is usually online. But instead of shotgunning hopeful queries into Google's search bar, you now only need one website to kick off the home sale process.
TrueParity, the platform where real estate agents compete for the right to list and sell your home, is the smartest way to begin your real estate journey. It streamlines the entire process to ensure home sellers always get the best terms and outcomes.
It instantly helped the owner of this Spring Valley house -- as it does with all sellers -- by performing all the due diligence on real estate agents in advance. TrueParity uses the latest data to highlight the top-performing local real estate agents, so owners can be certain the actual performance of a listing agent matches their reputation. Matthew merely posted his home, and shortly received listing proposals from multiple agents who he was positive would be great choices.
IMPORTANT: This homeowner did NOT just give away his listing to the first real estate agent he contacted.
Last year, most home sellers (80%, to be exact) only spoke with ONE agent before signing a listing agreement. This is a mistake. Not only should owners get multiple quotes to establish some general benchmarks, but it's totally fair to have agents compete for your listing. Your listing is a valuable commodity, why shouldn't a real estate agent put their best foot forward to earn it?
That's exactly what this owner did -- and he could not have been happier with what happened next. Directly on TrueParity, he could decide between two fantastic proposals. Thanks to a remarkably transparent platform, he could easily see what he would be getting from the two real estate professionals. It was stiff competition, but ultimately the listing terms and personality fit helped him choose his perfect match.
TrueParity totally delivered, and then some. In Matthew's words:
“I was moving out of state and needed to sell my home quickly; however, I didn’t just want to give it away at a total discount. Thanks to TrueParity, I found an agent that sold my house above the asking price and saved me thousands in commission fees.”
Of course, it wasn't just the owner who won big. His agent, Willem De Ridder, shared a similar sentiment.
“TrueParity is incredible for an agent. When a local homeowner posted their house on the platform, I was able to connect with them, send a proposal, and I’m happy to share that we’ve recently just closed escrow.”
Because TrueParity brought a home seller right to his fingertips he did not need to spend thousands of dollars on marketing, and Willem was able to offer the homeowner a more competitive commission structure. All of this added up nicely when it came to the owner's final take home.
The Financial Breakdown
- Original Purchase Price (2020): $575,000
- Listing Price: $815,000
- Final Sales Price: $820,000
That's an impressive $245,000 profit in 3 short years for this California house -- and $5,000 over asking. But there's more.
- Real Estate Broker Fee (Seller's Agent): 2.25%, totaling $18,450.
- Real Estate Broker Fee (Buyer's Agent): 2.25%, totaling $18,450.
Because TrueParity positioned the owner to receive optimal terms, the real estate agent fees combined to equal only 4.5% of the final sale price, much less than the 6% rate which has become commonplace in the California real estate market. The result is $12,300 in additional savings.
- Average Days on Market (DOM) in the local market: 33
- Days on Market (DOM) for this property: 16
Of course, one of the first and most important considerations for this sale was to find prospective buyers and get through the closing process as quickly as possible. Thanks to a forward-thinking homeowner, a phenomenal listing agent, and TrueParity, this home sale exceeded all expectations.
What This Means for Your Home Sale
Southern California, Northern California, anywhere in the country -- selling a house is hard! There are so many things to stress about: how to find home buyers, whether you need a real estate attorney review the purchase agreement, communicating with the escrow agent. Even worse, there are so many boobytraps hidden in the closing costs that are shrinking your net proceeds: title insurance, escrow fees, transfer tax, and more.
What you shouldn't need to worry about is having the best guide to navigate you through all of these challenges as quickly and economically as possible. California sellers have started to catch on; now homeowners across the country have access to the same game-changing platform.
TrueParity brings you the top real estate agents in your neighborhood, makes them compete against each other to offer you the best terms, and helps you capture the most value in your real estate transaction. Post your home for free, sit back, and sell with success.
Disclaimer: This blog post is based on real figures and events.
