BUYING & SELLING | A FIVE-PART SERIES PRESENTED by MG Residential’s Resident Blogger | Katie Shea Britton

PART 2 | VISION & PROCESS

You’ve made the decision the list your home – congratulations! More often than not, you’ll embark upon a home-search journey at the same time you’re preparing your current property for the market. This can be stressful and confusing, so what are a few things to keep in mind in order to minimize the impact on your sanity?

Don’t discount the benefit of vision.
Anyone working towards a goal knows that the process is just as important as the result. But it’s also important to know exactly what you’re working to achieve. Have you tried a vision board? If that’s too much to tackle, take a few moments each day to stop and think about exactly where you see yourself in one month (first open house?), three months (settlement table?), and one year (a bigger home on a quiet block? A sleek condo in the heart of the city?) This exercise serves two purposes – to create in your mind a visual representation of a goal not yet realized and to keep you focused on the steps necessary to achieve that goal.

Separate the processes but maximize your time.
Selling your home and buying a new one are two very different processes. They’re happening simultaneously for you, but your potential home-buyer has no connection to your future home purchase. This gives you the opportunity to approach each transaction with different bargaining power; to use different opportunities to leverage your position in each transaction.  Do you already have a buyer for your current property? Perhaps you can offer a quick settlement as part of your offer on your next home. That might be an attractive, non-financial part of your offer.

Also, realize that certain experiences provide valuable insight into both listing and buying – hit those open houses! What are people in your neighborhood shopping for? How can you position your home as you prepare to list in order to reflect its strengths and highlight its character? Conversely, what characteristics are you looking for in your next property? Hitting the open house circuit as a buyer will definitely help you to craft your vision for your next property.

Tap into your resources.
Perhaps the most overwhelming feeling associated with buying and selling is the burden of having to do it all yourself. Granted, this is a very hands-on process and there is much of it that can not be outsourced. However, there’s much of it that can. So many things in the world of real estate transactions happen off-market, and the recurring theme in both buying and selling is leveraging your networks. Your realtor has a professional network of colleagues, clients, business owners, and others, all of whom become a resource to you when you’re looking to buy or sell. You have friends, neighbors, professional contacts, and many others who become your eyes and ears during this process. Use them all! Don’t be afraid to share your vision. Someone just might have a great scoop on your future home. Let people know you’re selling even before you list – someone in one of your networks may already know your buyer.

The process of moving is rarely stress-free. Understanding that vision and process will guide you through the transactions to a certain degree, but that flexibility and hard work are also necessary components, will position you to achieve the sale and the purchase you desire. As always, the right agent will guide you, so contact the award-winning MG Residential team for a consultation today.