Selling your first home can be exciting, exhausting and daunting. You have already navigated your home buying experience, but now you are on the other side. Your primary goal is to maximize your profit and there is much to consider before sticking a sign in your front yard.

Be prepared to put aside the feelings you have for your home. You have to think of it as a property in a business transaction, not as the place where you have memories and emotional ties. Once you have decided to sell, you must be as detached as possible, especially during negotiations. Then and throughout all the rest of the selling process, you need to hire a professional real estate agent. Don’t think you will be saving money by avoiding fees if you sell by owner. A home sale is loaded with landmines. For the best results and the biggest profit, let an agent market your home, explain the best ways to prepare it for sale and get you the best plan for closing the deal quickly. Find a top producing listing agent who can give you a comprehensive marketing plan.

You have work to do to get your home ready to show. First impressions are extremely important so you need to declutter everything: closets, tabletops, walls, garage, basement, lawn, everything. You need to depersonalize your house so that potential buyers can easily picture themselves living there. Plan to stage your home to show it at its best, both in person and in the marketing photos. The cost of a professional stager is a smart expense to maximize your selling power.

Freshen up your home with a few low cost improvements. New paint is the single best change, especially if you need to neutralize some vivid colors. Professionally cleaned floors and carpets will provide a bright look and a clean smell. You might want to replace outdated light fixtures and cabinet hardware. Cover dings in any woodwork and polish cabinets. Enhance curb appeal with trimmed bushes, repaired fencing and a manicured lawn. First impressions are key.

When your house is ready, price it to sell. Your agent will help you evaluate comparative home sales in your area, discuss the current market and set a realistic price. You don’t want to “test the market” with an inflated price and then have your house sit without offers. Buyers worry about houses that have been on the market for a long time, so a quick sale is better. Of course, you don’t want to underprice it either, so count on the counsel of your agent to price it right. Also, discuss closing costs and other selling expenses with your agent so you aren’t taken by surprise later.

Once your house is listed, keep it neat and be ready to leave when prospective buyers come for a showing. Buyers will feel more relaxed and will spend more time looking at your home if you aren’t hovering nearby. Be as flexible as you can with showing times and be prepared for several appointments within the first week. If a low-ball bid comes in, don’t take it personally or react emotionally. This is the start of the negotiation process and you have your agent in your corner to get you the best price.

Finally, have your movers lined up early. You can start packing as you declutter the house and be ready to go as soon as the closing is complete. Get excited – and be prepared for the next chapter as you leave your first home behind.

“Moving is easy and packing is fun,” said nobody ever! Packing up everything you own is stressful and tedious, so follow a few simple tips to make your move more streamlined.

Give yourself time

Packing can be overwhelming, so pace yourself to help keep things organized. Pack non-essential or off-season items weeks before your move. Books, knick-knacks, framed art and anything else you won’t use until you are in your new home can all be packed early. Eliminate some of the stress by packing a little bit at a time.

Downsize and donate

Now is the time for cleaning out closets, cupboards, the attic, basement and garage. Be ruthless! Donate or toss everything you don’t use. The more you get rid of, the less you have to pack, move and organize in your new home.

Stock up on moving supplies

Sometimes boxes from grocery or liquor stores work well and they don’t cost you anything. However, they may not be clean or hold the weight of your items and many different sizes of boxes are harder to stack in a moving truck. Use boxes designed for moving when necessary. Keep items clean by using white packing paper. Newsprint may work for some things, but the ink can smear on other pieces. Get plenty of packing tape and markers. You will probably need more than you think you do.

Label each box carefully

Unpacking is harder than packing because you have to decide where everything goes in your new place. Give yourself a break by labeling boxes clearly with their contents and destination. For example, “Kitchen: Dishes and Glasses” or “Master Bedroom:  Shoes and Purses.” Label the tops and sides of the boxes and be sure to mark “Fragile” when appropriate.

Keep “just in case” items handy

Don’t pack all your tools. You might need a screwdriver for taking the mirror off the dresser and other possible last minute projects. You’ll need them at your new home, too, along with light bulbs, extension cords and power strips. Make a complete “just in case” list and keep those items handy.

Keep essential items close, too

There are several things you will need immediately at the new house. These include toilet paper, hand soap, bed linens, cleaning supplies and anything else you will want your first night at the new house. Snacks and medications should be handy, as well as a small first aid kit. You might want to pack these in a clear plastic box so they stay in plain sight.

Don’t ship everything with the movers

Transport legal documents and other important papers yourself. You might also choose to move heirlooms or precious breakables in your own vehicle. There are some things that you actually can’t move, so review the rules about what you can’t pack in a moving van. Some common household chemicals can’t be shipped because they are hazardous or flammable.

Pack an overnight bag

Everyone in your family needs pajamas, clean underwear and a change of clothes, along with basic toiletries and other essentials. You will probably be too tired to unpack everything, so keep the overnight bag in your car until you need it. Make the beds, go out to eat and get a good night’s sleep before tackling the unpacking in the morning.

Much of the country is currently experiencing a strong sellers’ market. Homes are moving quickly and it’s quite likely a property may receive multiple offers. This is a strong position for you if you have your home on the market, but you need to be wise when judging which offer is actually the best one.

It is natural to want to take the highest price, but be smart and look at the whole offer to judge if it is really the best option. You want an offer that has a good chance of closing successfully and is not weighed down by unreasonable or undesirable contingencies.

Take this scenario, for example: One offer is $5,000 above the next, but includes a contingency for inspections and mortgage appraisal. The buyer making the second offer has conducted a pre-inspection and is willing to take the home as-is and waive the appraisal. You may decide the $5,000 difference is not worth the potential problems and take the second offer.

Another example: one offer is considerably higher, but is only putting down 5%. A lower offer that includes 20% down may be the better choice for you. A low down payment can mean the buyers are not really serious about your house and will pull out of the deal if they find something they like better.

Perhaps you receive one offer with conventional financing and another a few thousand dollars higher with FHA financing. This may be significant to your decision especially if you are in a hurry to close the deal because of a job transfer or other reasons. FHA loans have more stringent guidelines than traditional loans and therefore more risk for slower closing dates. It might be better to take the lower offer to dodge potential complications.

You want to avoid accepting any offer with risks that it could backfire. If your buyers get cold feet after your house has been off the market for several days, you are back to square one. The next buyers in line will assume something is wrong and momentum for selling your home could be stalled.

The following sliding scale is a good illustration of the worst to the best scenarios you could expect if multiple buyers offer the SAME price for your home:

• All cash, no contingencies
• All cash, pre-inspected
• Big down payment, inspection & appraisal waived
• Big down payment but contingent on inspection and other contingencies
• Contingent on low down payment, inspection, appraisal, title & HOA review, low earnest money and asking for closing costs

As always, count on your agent to help you evaluate the strength of each offer you receive. Enjoy being in the driver’s seat while selling your home in this competitive market. The tables may turn as you begin the search for your next house!

There are many unavoidable tasks to tackle as you prepare to sell your home and move. However, you can reduce some of the stress with this checklist. Use it as a guide to avoid over-thinking and over-doing a few things. You’ve got enough to do already!

First:  Hire an Agent

You want to get the best price for your home and there are plenty of potential pitfalls before reaching that goal. A good agent will help you set the right price, handle marketing, manage negotiations and guide you through all the necessary paperwork. You will increase your chance for a quick sale with an agent working for you, so hire a well qualified person and listen to their advice. Let your agent shoulder some of the stress.

Restrain Your Urge to Decorate

A few strategic changes to your home may really boost your asking-price, but don’t overdo it. Replacing worn carpet and paint are good ideas, but choose neutral colors even if that may not be your taste. You might love a Southwest motif, but your potential buyers might flinch. Going neutral with everything as you prepare for a sale should make decorating decisions easier.

Don’t Over Do Improvements

Again, there are changes you can make that will help your house sell, but don’t worry about the small stuff. You might opt to replace outdated appliances or broken door hinges. Concentrate on necessary fixes, but don’t overdue it. There are plenty of repairs that you could make that will neither increase the home’s value nor accelerate the sale. Be sure to ask your REALTOR^® what you should fix and what you should ignore before your house goes on the market.

Start Packing to Eliminate Clutter

Reducing the clutter around your house is a stress reliever because it helps get part of your packing done. This is your chance to weed out items you don’t want to keep:  donate some, recycle others and toss the rest.  A thorough clutter reduction before the house goes on the market will make it easier for you to do a quick clean up before each showing, too.

It’s Not Personal

When your house is for sale, you need to think like a business person and not a home owner. That means having a thick skin when prospective buyers are judging the pros and cons of your place. Of course, you have lots of emotion, memories and dreams tied up in your home. You need to put all that aside and distance yourself during the sale. Don’t feel badly if potential buyers complain about your choice of draperies or talk about digging up your rose bushes. Just get the house sold and then make plans for your next garden.

Don’t Stick Around

Get the entire family out the door when a showing is scheduled, including pets if possible. Buyers need to be able to imagine themselves in your home and that’s difficult if you are there. Refer back to the “It’s Not Personal” item above. They will likely say things that could hurt your feelings, so don’t stick around to hear their discussion. Avoid this stress, leave the house, and at the very least wait in the backyard while they are there.

Moving is a hard task and you want to get the sale completed quickly. Remove the stressors where you can. Before you know it, you’ll be handed the keys to your new dream house and be ready to start your next chapter.