How to Sell Your House In 5 Days

Thinking about selling your home quickly? Most homeowners are happy to list their homes and patiently wait for the right buyer to come along and make a suitable offer before escrow and contracts. Finding a buyer and completing a sale might take months or even years. For most people, that is accepted and par for the course.

Based on the current real estate market, it takes 60 to 90 days from the point of listing to escrow and close, on average. That assumes a ‘smooth sale’ where everything goes nicely without any unforeseen hiccups causing delays. Rarely will a house sale thunder along without any issues, so there is that to take into account.

Bear in mind that the property market is renowned for changing gears suddenly, which could drastically reduce or increase this average number. A property that sells in 100 days over the Summer months might take 200 days the following Spring. Some folks are lucky and enjoy a quick sale during a seller’s market – others are less fortunate.

Urgent Sellers

There are, however, a growing number of property owners who need to sell homes not just quickly but at lightning speed, hoping for a completed sale with a cash offer in one week or less.

There are a whole host of reasons why you need to sell your house fast. The most common is divorce, financial issues from losing your job, or experiencing problems as a business owner. The dread of foreclosure is also usually cited as one of the more common reasons throughout the country.

Others might need a quick sale owing to an unwanted inheritance or a sudden quite nasty bill from the IRS, which needs paying, urgently.

Most real estate agents would typically consider a fast home sale as anything around 7 to 10 days. By making a few allowances and sacrificing on the asking price, it shouldn’t be too challenging to hit this target.

But is it possible to sell your house in 5 days? It might seem like a remarkably ambitious time frame, and there are a few consequences involved with selling homes so quickly, but the good news is that it is indeed possible.

Let’s look at the most typical strategies, together with a little out-of-the-box thinking, and figure out how to sell your house in 5 days without too much stress or sacrifice on the best price possible.

Urgent Buyers

Really, we are targeting cash buyers here, usually in the form of house flippers and real estate investors. They are your target market in this situation and are the most likely candidates to buy your home.

Finding buyers ready to make a fair all-cash offer does not mean someone will turn up at your home and start the home buying process with a wheelbarrow full of money. But we expect you knew that. A local cash buyer means anyone with the funding in place, ready to transfer immediately, and not involved in a chain.

These people are your bread and butter buyers. Anyone outside of this category will almost certainly take longer than five days to complete. With a cash buyer, there is also no risk of the buyer’s financing falling through, offering more significant potential to sell your house free of complication.

Reducing the Asking Price

Let’s begin with the obvious. You are aware of this option already – it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that a drastic reduction in the market price will help attract more buyers and sell your home fast! This is your best option in finding a quick buyer with deep pockets.

No one enjoys waving goodbye to potential profits, but ultimately if you want a cash buyer ready to sign and complete quick-time, this is your best method.

Benefits of Reduced Listing Price

Before you think we have lost our minds, you should hear us out because there are some pretty good benefits to selling under-market value. For a start, you can wash your hands of any necessary repairs that otherwise would have been your concern at a list price.

By offering at a much lower rate and left unchanged, the buyer will accept the current condition as-is, meaning you can skip repairs and the usual stress and expense.

It may go against your natural instinct to present numerous defects in the listing, but remember, the buyer is getting a great deal and will fully accept the repairs in return for what will likely be a healthy profit for them. You never know; they might even enjoy the prospect and see it as a challenge!

Real estate investors will view repairs as typical with most properties they purchase, so don’t be afraid to put it out there, regardless of condition, as ‘worts and all!’

Local Cash Buyers

Every problem has an opposite solution, in one way or another. Homeowners needing an urgent sale have the exact opposite issue to cash buyers with an eye for a profit – they need a property to buy fast before other investors get there first.

You can find local cash buyers through traditional print advertising, flyers, street signage tied to lamposts, and that kind of thing. Combine with a few more modern advertising strategies like Craigs List, and your phone should ring with interested parties.

Any good real estate agent worth their salt will be able to find cash buyers quickly, so make sure you call around and spread the word that your property is available under market value.

The 5% Rule

One relatively simple solution is to check out properties in the local area and offer your property at 5% less than the most recent sale. Some caveats apply to this because each property comes with a different proposition. In other words, similar-sized properties in the local area might be in better or worse condition than your own, thus affecting the realistic final sale price.

The best way to approach this is to pick out ten recently sold properties in your immediate area. Ensure they are the same size, approximate age, and almost exact condition, then take the lowest priced sale amongst them and apply the 5% rule to your own.

This is an excellent method to attract immediate interest, especially when paired with an effective listing strategy.

Never Underestimate Curb Appeal

On the other hand, the exact opposite end of the market to real estate agents and investors would be your more typical retail buyer – those interested in buying property not to flip for profit but as a new home.

These buyers will factor in not just repairs and renovations but the general look and feel of a home. Curb appeal is a very tangible thing that can be gauged simply by stepping outside of your home and checking it out at a glance from a short distance.

The fact is that most buyers will find out the exact property address they might be interested in, then casually view a home with a quick drive-by (or walk past) before committing to an actual appointment to view it. If the first impression isn’t on point, they will almost certainly not take action to inspect the home in detail.

How to Create Curb Appeal

By taking a few steps to improve the aesthetics of a home, such as a fresh coat of paint, sprucing up the garden, and paying attention to the small details, you will increase desirability and, therefore, the chances of finding a buyer.

Realistically, you will not replace ugly roof tiles or resurface your driveway in such a short period, but it is possible to give both the roof and the drive a thorough jet wash and tidy-up.

The front door acts as the very soul of the house to many folks and is usually the first thing a buyer will see. Consider a fresh coat of paint in a nice bold, inviting color to mentally appeal to new homeowners.

First impressions also apply to your online listing. Make sure your photos are crystal clear, taken professionally (if possible), and uploaded using necessary filters to make your home stand out amongst other properties online.

Inside The House

First impressions also count with the interior. Clutter is a significant negative and seriously negates the elegance of a home, so make sure you move anything in the way and unsightly into storage.

More obviously, you need to make sure the place is clean – including curtains and walls (fresh paint is always a bonus) and pay close attention to bathrooms and kitchens, which should be squeaky clean.

Remove Your Listing

If your house has been listed without interest from potential buyers, you might find that your property is now buried in a swarm of other listings. In other words, you are not being prioritized.

Agents and property websites want to see quick sales and promote newer properties over older listings, hoping these more recent properties might sell quickly. One way to combat this is to remove your listing, wait for a few days, and re-list. You should see your property advertised more prominently – at least for a while.

Promote a “One Day Only” Bargain Sale

The idea here is to launch a one-day sale just in the same way as you might with a yard sale, with the obvious exception that you are selling the whole house in this instance. This might sound like a basic strategy, but honestly, you might be surprised at the results.

You can promote the sale using the same combination of internet and print marketing – Craigs List, local Facebook groups, and posting printed flyers in the local area and placing signage at intersections and local news outlets.

Trust us, you really will have people turn up and make offers. At the end of the day, simply go through each submission and contact the highest bidder. You might have one or two time wasters, but you will have a bunch of leads to contact, some of which will be serious buyers, potentially.

Offer Incentives

This new strategy is becoming more popular amongst property owners who need a quick, urgent sale, willing to incentivize the house sale with something of value. By offering a free incentive, you might push them over the line, assuming they have other similar properties on their radar. It’s worth a shot and often yields results.

One idea might be to offer prepaid house taxes for a couple of years, a free home warranty, or an offer to pay all closing fees. A commission fee might be worth considering to anyone who promotes the property on your behalf, obtaining a measurable result.

Summary

The truth is this; selling your property in 5 days is possible but not ideal. Aiming for 14 days would be a better, more comfortable option, leaving little room for error and less pressure. That said, we are on hand to take some of that pressure off with our much reputed Highest Cash Offer service if you need an urgent sale without the hassle!

With zero closing costs, purchased ‘as-is’ condition, without a real estate agent or listings to worry about. If you need help, submit your property address for a no-obligation offer!