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A Step-by-Step First Time Seller's Guide

Putting your home on the market can be a stressful process, especially when you don’t know what to expect. Fortunately, with the help of an experienced agent and this easy to follow guide, you can smoothly complete the process. Following these steps will help you prepare so you can get organized and sell your home for the best price possible.​​​​​​​

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Step 1: Understand Why You're Selling

What do you want to accomplish with the sale of your home? Do you want to make a certain amount of money that you can put toward a larger or nicer home? Do you need to sell it as soon as possible to facilitate a move to a new city or area? Once you understand your needs, you can better craft your offer. For example, if you need to sell quickly, you might want to price your home lower than if your goal is to make a certain profit margin. Make sure you convey these needs to your real estate agent once you choose one so he or she can adjust your selling price accordingly.

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Step 2: Determine Selling Price

Knowing how to price your home is one of the most important parts of the selling process. When you set a fair price in the beginning, you’ll get the most interest from other real estate agents and prospective buyers. Overpricing your home could lead to reduced interest, and underpricing leads to receiving less than what your home is worth. Working with a real estate agent is the best way to determine the right selling price for your home. An agent with experience can determine what other comparable homes are selling for, evaluate the current market, and may even suggest a home appraisal.

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Step 3: Start Preparations

If you’ve kept your home in showroom condition since you’ve lived in it, you’re in the minority of homeowners. Once you price your home, it’s time to start getting it ready to be shown to potential buyers. This includes getting rid of clutter, depersonalizing the space so that buyers can envision themselves in the space, making any small repairs, and doing a deep clean to make sure your home is in pristine condition.

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Step 4: Develop a Marketing Strategy

I will develop a marketing strategy that is perfect for advertising your home. This involves listing the home and then driving the right people to that listing through social media campaigns, agent-to-agent referrals, traditional media, or SEO advertising. My team creates a marketing campaign that aims to get the most possible traffic to your listing in the first three weeks after becoming a client.

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Step 5: Evaluate Offers

Receiving an offer is an exciting part of the process, but it doesn’t mean the journey is over. I will evaluate each offer and make sure the party making the offer is prequalified or pre-approved by a mortgage lender and that their offer is acceptable to you. If the offer is too low, you can make a counter-offer or offer other ways to bridge the gap, such as covering some or all of the closing costs, making repairs, adjusting the move-in date, or leaving some appliances or fixtures for the new buyer.

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Step 6: Accept an Offer

Once I deem the offer is acceptable, I will review the proposed contract to make sure it’s all in order and includes the necessary components such as deposit amount, down payment, financing, inspection rights and repair allowances, contingencies, settlement date, and a list of fees and who will pay them. When both parties have agreed to the term, a final contract will be prepared by your agent.

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Step 7: Get Ready to Close

You have accepted an offer and are now very close to the end of your selling journey. But first, you and the buyer must make a list of what needs to be done before closing. In some cases, your home may need to be formally inspected, surveyed, and appraised. In other cases, major or minor repairs will need to be made before the house can close. I will head up efforts to develop and execute this list, get each action item paid for by the correct party, and make sure everything is in order by the closing date. A few days before the closing date, we will call the company closing the transaction to make sure everything is ready to go. If you haven’t done so already, you also need to make arrangements to move out of the home so the new buyer can take possession.

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Step 8: Close

You’ve reached the last step in the seller’s process. When you close on a home you are selling, you are legally transferring ownership of the property to the new buyer. I will meet with the company closing the transaction to sign the final paperwork and go over any issues that have not yet been taken care of. During this time, you can also make plans with your real estate agent to handle final details such as canceling utilities, cable, and lawn or trash services, changing the name on accounts that the new owner is retaining and ensuring the new owner has instructions for all appliances that will remain in the home.

Congratulations!

Once you have sold your home, you’re free to take the next step on your journey. Whether this is relocating to a new city, moving into a larger home, or downsizing and enjoying your life as empty-nesters, knowing all your selling responsibilities have been taken care of will help you achieve peace of mind for your new path.

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Blake is very responsive to any questions we had through the selling and buying process. He kept us abreast of every step along the way. Blake was sensitive to how stressful selling and buying can be, and worked to minimize it. He was very respectful of our time. We would highly recommend him.

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We had a great experience as first time home buyers and he was always available to answer questions.

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Blake has sold two of my homes and facilitated the purchase of my last home. He will get the highest profit for your sale and the best value for your purchase. I look forward to purchasing my next home with Blake Halverson Real Estate. In sum three words describe Blake Halverson Real Estate HONESTY, INTEGRITY, SERVICE

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Blake was such a wonderful partner in our first home buying experience. He gave amazing advice through this super tough market (Summer 2021). He helped us get the absolutely perfect home for us and was such a joy to work with. We will definitely be repeat clients when that time comes. He is punctual, professional, personable and best of all HONEST. I’ve worked with realtors in the past that would say “I’...

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Blake was great always available and informative. Felt like the entire process was comfortable and pleasant as well as I felt like a priority.

— Buyer/Seller

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Blake is highly professional and appreciates repeat business. We have had several business interaction together and they have all been a success. Strongly recommend him as a realtor, very knowledgeable of the industry and the Twin Cities market.

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Blake was a referral from a friend's referral and I wasn't sure what to expect. Boy was I blown away! He was such a pleasure to work with. I appreciated his flexibility, honestly and just genuine kindness. The buying process was bittersweet, although we are so happy we found our perfect home, I'll definitely miss working with Blake. I recommend him to anyone that is on the hunt to buy a new home! You wil...

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Blake Halverson LISTENS and pays attention to the details as well as the big picture. Blake cares as much about getting the right price for our house and the right piece of Real Estate as we did. He always answered our calls and addressed our concerns. When I was stressed, he listened and reassured me. Blake Halverson is the best person to deal with concerning Real Estate!!

— Seller

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Blake was great with us being first-time-home buyers. We really appreciated all the answers to our questions and especially the responsiveness. We will definitely be using Blake in the future for any of our Real Estate needs and could not give a higher recommendation!

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I have worked closely with several realtors over the years, but when the time came to purchase my own home I thought to hire none other than Blake Halverson. Blake is the realtor you engage when you wish to rest assured that nothing will go wrong with the transaction. Fast to respond to calls and emails, prepared to understand precisely the home you are looking for, thoroughly knowledgeable about the mar...

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Blake took great care of me in my Home buying experience by listening to my needs and assuring my Best interest were represented! Thanks Blake!

— Buyer

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While, the home buying process is a bit harrowing, we would not have been able to do it without Blake. I called Blake from over 1,000 miles away and told him that we needed to be in a dream home in only a couple of months... and he made it happen! Blake knows the process well and is extremely approachable and friendly. If we ever move again I would not consider working with anyone else. I only gave him ...

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I worked with Blake to buy my first home. He was very responsive, helpful, and easy to work with.

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Blake was nothing short of an amazing realtor for us first-time home buyers! It was so very evident in the way he approached working with us that he is truly passionate about what he does, and doing whatever he can to help his clients find their Minnesota home. The amount of questions we had for him leading up to open houses, during the open houses, after the open houses, at random points in the night w...

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As a first time home buyers, we had never worked with a realtor before. We met with several realtors, trying to find one that we could trust & we know would work hard for us to find our dream home. When we met Blake, it was obvious he was a cut above the rest. Blake is a true professional, works hard, and treats everyone with the utmost respect. Blake provided us with sound advice at every property we vi...

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Blake is an absolute pro. As first-time homebuyers, my husband and I had what felt like a zillion questions for him, and he had an answer for all of them (or tracked down an answer like bloodhound after a fox!). We felt very comfortable asking even the "stupid" questions and we knew we were finally in good hands with him. In this crazy seller's market, Blake helped us find an amazing home in the neighbor...

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Blake is just a great guy. I felt very comfortable working with him in finding my new home. He is a man that loves his job and is passionate about helping people find the right home. I highly recommend Blake!

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From the moment we met with Blake about selling our home to closing on our new home, Blake was nothing but exceptional. He immediately understood us and our wants and needs. It no longer was my husband and I buying a home but rather the three of us becoming a team throughout the entire process. He stood by us and up for us the whole time with professionalism and respect for everyone involved. We don’t re...

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Blake is an amazing real estate agent. He went the extra mile to find our family our dream home. He also has an network of professional associates he works with that can make your home purchase seamless. I recommend Blake to everyone I know!

— Misty L.

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Blake was our realtor when moved to Minnesota from California. We were impressed by his professionalism, stellar customer service, and his quick responses to our questions throughout the process. We've been in our home for three years and we absolutely love it. Blake has been so gracious to answer any real estate questions we've had through the years and we feel like he's always got our best interests in...

— Joe A.

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Truly a Professional. As a Home inspector in the twin cities I have worked with Blake multiple times. He absolutely cares about his clients needs. Blake will attend the inspection and be sure his clients understand the findings. I would recommend Blake any day.

— Todd D.

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This is the 2nd time I have used Blake as my realtor. I first met Blake when I was looking at a property that he was the listing agent. Since I was not represented at the time, I chose to hire him as my agent. He helped me my find my first home. I was so impressed with his services that when I decided to move into the country, I contacted Blake to help me through the process a second time. On the second ...

— Maria T.

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Blake helped us through the process of selling our home and purchasing a new one. Of course, it was a pretty stressful experience, especially considering it was our first home sale, but Blake explained everything to us, and never showed any signs of annoyance or frustration when we would ask all the questions that we had. It was evident that he understood that even though he had been through the process ...

— Hai N.

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We worked with Blake when we were buying our new home, and later selling it. Working through both of these processes, Blake was an excellent communicator and explained and guided my wife and I through each step along the way. He was able to negotiate a fantastic deal both on the buying side and the selling side, and we were thrilled to have him representing us. If I buy again in the future I wouldn't ...

— Pete S.

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Blake was the perfect realtor for our real estate needs. He understood and was patient with our timelines and never pushed to get us to sell or purchase before we were ready. He was patient and always happy to show us all the homes we wanted to look at which was refreshing since the home search process took almost a full year. Once we found our dream home, he was the BEST negotiator and got us the house ...

— Christine K.

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Whether you are buying a home or selling one, Blake is your guy. He’s been awesome to work. Very knowledgeable and always looking for ways to benefit you. Also, not afraid to give you his opinion on a prospective home or an offer. Blake will be my first call if or when looking for a new home in the future.

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My husband and I just recently bought a home for the first time. We went into the process not doing anything about buying a home. Blake helped make the process easier, and he was very responsive if we had any questions or concerns.

— Tredinnick M.

WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY

I had an excellent experience working with Blake in buying my home. As a first-time buyer, I was largely unfamiliar with the specifics of the homebuying process, but Blake was always available to answer my questions and offer helpful information. When making big decisions, it is such a boon to have someone that you can trust to represent your interests, and Blake certainly did that for us.

— Sam C.

WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY

Blake has been a realtor for my family for the past decade. He is always willing to go the extra mile for anything we need, including being very honest about the properties. Recently, I moved out of state, and he was more than willing to do Zoom calls for me to see the property in real time since I couldn't be in person. He ended up finding me the perfect home. I couldn't be more happy and would recommen...

— Tasha B.

WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY

Blake came highly recommended by a family member and her husband. Everything they stated about Blake was true. He is extremely professional and knowledgeable about the real estate market. I was very nervous about purchasing my first home and didn't have much knowledge about where to start. During our initial call, Blake made me feel comfortable and at ease. When I asked questions, he answered without jud...

— Buyer

WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY

Blake is phenomenal, he was patient and kind with my husband and I. Buying your first home can be scary and exciting all at the same time. Blake gave us the absolute best experience. I highly recommend using him if you're looking at buying a home. Thank you a million times, we are loving being homeowners!

— Kyleigh H.

WHAT MY CLIENTS SAY

Knowledgeable, pleasant, and asking questions was comfortable. I would recommend Blake!

— Cindy F.

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