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Seller's Guide

Everything you need to know about putting your home on the market, accepting an offer, and closing on your home.

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, I 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.

Trust Built on Results

Client Testimonials

Don’t just take our word for it — hear directly from our clients.

"Melinda is an absolute professional and will do everything to make the buying or selling process perfectly seamless. While she is skilled in every area of real estate, one of her greatest strengths is as a powerful advocate for her clients."
"Melinda is an absolute professional and will do everything to make the buying or selling process perfectly seamless. While she is skilled in every area of real estate, one of her greatest strengths is as a powerful advocate for her clients."
Rachele P.
"Susanna took us step by step through the sales process. She and her stager provided the guidance we needed to maximize the potential of our home of 37 years. Was critical because the market where we are moving inflated faster than the NH market. Her process was professional and provided the best possible results!"
"Susanna took us step by step through the sales process. She and her stager provided the guidance we needed to maximize the potential of our home of 37 years. Was critical because the market where we are moving inflated faster than the NH market. Her process was professional and provided the best possible results!"
Anthony L.
"Cheryl came to is highly recommended by neighbors. We spoke with a few agents before meeting Cheryl, and she was unquestionably the best fit for our family's needs. Cheryl and her team were professional, courteous, and always respectful. She helped us make a sound pricing decision based on a comprehensive market comparison. I was most impressed with how Cheryl leveraged her extensive experience and network to generate significant buyer interest in our home and get us under contract prior to our projected list date, saving us the stress of numerous showings and open houses."
"Cheryl came to is highly recommended by neighbors. We spoke with a few agents before meeting Cheryl, and she was unquestionably the best fit for our family's needs. Cheryl and her team were professional, courteous, and always respectful. She helped us make a sound pricing decision based on a comprehensive market comparison. I was most impressed with how Cheryl leveraged her extensive experience and network to generate significant buyer interest in our home and get us under contract prior to our projected list date, saving us the stress of numerous showings and open houses."
Kat
"We truly enjoyed working with Cheryl Zarella and could not be happier with our home or the entire buying experience. Since we are new to the area and were looking to buy in the fall, we pretty much spent the entire summer stalking the market and brainstorming prior to finding a realtor. Cheryl came highly recommended to us and I was immediately impressed with how carefully she listened to me in our first conversation and made sense of my initially discombobulated thoughts and questions. Amazingly, in a very competitive market, she was able to find exactly the kind of home we were looking for in just a few days. Her expertise was critical because, with her guidance, we passed on homes that we might have otherwise settled with given our anxiety over how competitive the market is, and instead jumped on the right opportunity when it came up. Her negotiation skills were extremely helpful at each step of the buying process. In fact, the entire experience could not have been more seamless. Cheryl has an extremely calming and collected presence while also always being on top of every detail. We felt that she was always there for us to thoroughly answer any questions that we had and she always followed up on each step to make sure we understood what we were doing. She and her team were also so thoughtful and caring the day of the closing by having a box of toys in the office ready for our 4-year-old and by helping keep our cranky 1-year-old calm. Buying a home and moving can be stressful and we could not be more grateful that Cheryl was our realtor. We highly recommend Cheryl Zarella for all your real estate needs!"
"We truly enjoyed working with Cheryl Zarella and could not be happier with our home or the entire buying experience. Since we are new to the area and were looking to buy in the fall, we pretty much spent the entire summer stalking the market and brainstorming prior to finding a realtor. Cheryl came highly recommended to us and I was immediately impressed with how carefully she listened to me in our first conversation and made sense of my initially discombobulated thoughts and questions. Amazingly, in a very competitive market, she was able to find exactly the kind of home we were looking for in just a few days. Her expertise was critical because, with her guidance, we passed on homes that we might have otherwise settled with given our anxiety over how competitive the market is, and instead jumped on the right opportunity when it came up. Her negotiation skills were extremely helpful at each step of the buying process. In fact, the entire experience could not have been more seamless. Cheryl has an extremely calming and collected presence while also always being on top of every detail. We felt that she was always there for us to thoroughly answer any questions that we had and she always followed up on each step to make sure we understood what we were doing. She and her team were also so thoughtful and caring the day of the closing by having a box of toys in the office ready for our 4-year-old and by helping keep our cranky 1-year-old calm. Buying a home and moving can be stressful and we could not be more grateful that Cheryl was our realtor. We highly recommend Cheryl Zarella for all your real estate needs!"
June
"My wife and I were referred to Cheryl by a friend of ours and I can not say enough good things about our experience working with her. We were relocating from out of state and Cheryl turned out to be everything we could have hoped for in an agent. She is sincere, knowledgeable, and truly committed to helping her clients find the perfect home. She was always and immediately available by phone and email and she happily accommodated our tight schedule for viewing homes. She met us early and late, on weekends and on weekdays and she always managed to seamlessly schedule viewings of all of the properties we were interested in. The time we spent with her was always super productive and efficient. Cheryl knows the market. We were unsure where we wanted to buy and Cheryl was incredibly knowledgeable about the markets in towns all across Southern New Hampshire. Once we decided on a home Cheryl was invaluable in the negotiation process. We ended up in a multiple offer situation and Cheryl's guidance helped us get our offer accepted while keeping us under budget. From our first meeting through the closing, Cheryl was always attentive and helpful. Not only is she great at her job but she is also a really sweet person and a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend working with her and I look forward to her help the next time we look to buy or sell a home."
"My wife and I were referred to Cheryl by a friend of ours and I can not say enough good things about our experience working with her. We were relocating from out of state and Cheryl turned out to be everything we could have hoped for in an agent. She is sincere, knowledgeable, and truly committed to helping her clients find the perfect home. She was always and immediately available by phone and email and she happily accommodated our tight schedule for viewing homes. She met us early and late, on weekends and on weekdays and she always managed to seamlessly schedule viewings of all of the properties we were interested in. The time we spent with her was always super productive and efficient. Cheryl knows the market. We were unsure where we wanted to buy and Cheryl was incredibly knowledgeable about the markets in towns all across Southern New Hampshire. Once we decided on a home Cheryl was invaluable in the negotiation process. We ended up in a multiple offer situation and Cheryl's guidance helped us get our offer accepted while keeping us under budget. From our first meeting through the closing, Cheryl was always attentive and helpful. Not only is she great at her job but she is also a really sweet person and a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend working with her and I look forward to her help the next time we look to buy or sell a home."
G. T.
"Cheryl was amazing. Extremely knowledgeable and confident. Our home sold quickly. Her team is great too. Very smooth process the whole way through."
"Cheryl was amazing. Extremely knowledgeable and confident. Our home sold quickly. Her team is great too. Very smooth process the whole way through."
Seller
"She is very knowledgeable of the area and is very easy going."
"She is very knowledgeable of the area and is very easy going."
Buyer | Seller
"Cheryl Zarella helped me both buy and purchase two homes within four years. Every realtor will tell you they ‘know the area’ and so on. What sets Cheryl aside is that she invests herself in the property being sold. The photos and videos are second to none, the marketing is tremendous, and the showings are always professional. She understands the quirky things about home inspections and all the other little things to truly protect her client at every turn. Lastly, with Cheryl, you get a TEAM, not just a realtor. I would personally never buy or sell a home without Cheryl and her team."
"Cheryl Zarella helped me both buy and purchase two homes within four years. Every realtor will tell you they ‘know the area’ and so on. What sets Cheryl aside is that she invests herself in the property being sold. The photos and videos are second to none, the marketing is tremendous, and the showings are always professional. She understands the quirky things about home inspections and all the other little things to truly protect her client at every turn. Lastly, with Cheryl, you get a TEAM, not just a realtor. I would personally never buy or sell a home without Cheryl and her team."
Buyer
"Cheryl and her team are great. When she wasn’t available, another one of her team members was there to help with the same level of expertise. Wouldn’t have wanted anyone else working with us in the buying and selling of both homes. All realtors basically ‘cost’ the same. So, if there’s no difference in price, I figure why not get the best?"
"Cheryl and her team are great. When she wasn’t available, another one of her team members was there to help with the same level of expertise. Wouldn’t have wanted anyone else working with us in the buying and selling of both homes. All realtors basically ‘cost’ the same. So, if there’s no difference in price, I figure why not get the best?"
Buyer
"Cheryl Zarella represented me as a seller’s agent for the sale of my home. She knew exactly what needed to be done to present the house in the best light, got everything together promptly, and ultimately got me my asking price in less than two weeks. She was knowledgeable, patient, and responsive. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for an agent."
"Cheryl Zarella represented me as a seller’s agent for the sale of my home. She knew exactly what needed to be done to present the house in the best light, got everything together promptly, and ultimately got me my asking price in less than two weeks. She was knowledgeable, patient, and responsive. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for an agent."
Seller

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