Selling Houses Online: Best Practices in 2022

Nothing irritates buyers and their agents more than not understanding enough about a property before going to see it in person. The fact is that today’s purchasers are web-savvy to the point of being overly picky. If your home listing doesn’t provide the information they’re searching for, you can be certain they’ll find it elsewhere. How do you sell your home online?

According to the National Association of Realtors, 52% of buyers found their dream home online rather than driving around target neighborhoods or flipping through brochures. When it comes to your home’s online presence, you want to make sure your listing is tailored to the right audience of potential buyers. This may be done by conducting careful market research, using great photos, and doing effective outreach. 

In this blog post, we will discuss some of the best practices to sell your home online in 2022. We will cover everything from setting the right price to using the right marketing techniques. If you want to get the most money for your house, read on!

Selling Houses Online

Why sell your House online.

Let’s look at some of the benefits:

Efficiency – Selling online allows you to reach out to a large number of potential customers who are actively looking for houses. This helps you save time by not having to meet each buyer or agent individually.

Data is Rich – The data in real estate is very rich and well-organized. This makes it ideal for online marketing, which helps you target specific audiences more effectively.

Knowledge is Power – You can refocus and retarget to a better audience by taking advantage of the interaction you are getting from your online listing. This may save you a lot of money on marketing.

Is it difficult to sell your home online?

The fact is that it’s increasingly easier than ever to advertise your house online and sell it. When compared to all other marketing techniques, the internet is without a doubt the greatest. Going offline would actually take more time and effort.

There are several online resources and technologies available to help you develop a data-driven approach once you’ve decided to sell. Organizing and making good use of these resources takes only a few minutes. Let’s look at some of the most popular online tactics now that we’ve reviewed the highlights.

Traditional Route of selling a home on the Internet

Local real estate agents are the most popular way to sell your home online. Because you’re paying for the full services of a listing agent, they’ll handle all marketing, open houses, assist with buyers and their agents, and help you close. The biggest advantage to hiring local agents is having access to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) as your main marketing platform.

Many agencies would just show properties listed by their agents without the local MLS, severely restricting a buyer’s ability to discover all homes accessible in an area. The MLS, then, is both a useful and beneficial tool for sellers and buyers: it allows sellers to reach the greatest number of potential buyers in their advertising efforts while allowing agents to search through listings.

The real estate agent commission is usually 6% of the sales price. If you want to pay less but get fewer services, some discount brokers offer limited services in return for a reduced fee. In this case, you may have to deal directly with a buyer’s agent when negotiating.

Are Real estate agents necessary?

When selling a home, real estate professionals are not required. But If you’re a first-time property seller, I recommend the use of a real estate agent. There are numerous phases to go through and lots of moving components to keep track of for someone who has never sold a house before.

However, repeat home sellers often realize that selling their next house without an agent is not such a hectic process. The fact is that the majority of the work in selling a home is still done by the homeowner, with only minor assistance from the real estate agent. Many homeowners contemplate if the advantages of working with an agent outweigh the price paid.

Selling online without a real estate agent

Only a small percentage of sellers opt to sell their property FSBO (for sale by owner) or without an agent. Selling FSBO has several advantages, such as the freedom from having to pay a realtor. In this scenario, the homeowner is solely accountable for nearly the entire real estate transaction, which includes:

  1. Researching the local market.
  2. Setting a listing price.
  3. Cleaning/ Declutter/ Staging.
  4. Taking professional photos.
  5. Write a captivating listing description.
  6. Promoting and Marketing your listing.
  7. Setting up the Open House.
  8. Screening home buyers.
  9. Negotiating with the Buyer’s Agent.
  10. Communicating with the Title Firm involved.
  11. Close.

This may seem daunting but the real estate market has been sizzling hot for the past year. Even cash buyers are offering above statistical market value for homes. You can almost expect multiple offers from buyers on the same day of listing your property. 

Because of this, selling your property online privately is likely to grow in popularity in the future. Furthermore, many websites are now capable of assisting an owner with determining the market value of their home and advertising and listing it effectively. All you have to do now is snap some nice photographs and create an outstanding description to sell your house online successfully.

What is the best way to Sell Online privately?

Determine the fair market value of your home. 

  • Use a home valuation site
  • Get a comparable market analysis(CMA) from a local agent
  • Hire a professional appraiser

Prepare the home for sale.

  • Make necessary repairs
  • Declutter and deep clean
  • Stage the home
  • Do professional landscaping

Market the home for sale. 

  • Advertise with online paid ads
  • post on all the social media platforms
  • post on any home seller websites 

Negotiate the sale. 

  • Maintain an open line of communication will all potential buyers
  • Prioritize the strongest buyers first
  • Accept the best offer in a timely manner

Handle the closing.

  • Understand the hurdles traditional buyers have in regard to financing
  • Communicate frequently with all parties to make sure the closing process goes smoothly

What are the best real estate websites to sell your house?

Zillow Group

Zillow is the most popular real estate website in the United States. 

They provide a transparent and quick process for selling, buying, renting, and financing houses that is on-demand and virtually instantaneous throughout the whole process.

Realtor.com

Realtor.com is a real estate website that connects consumers with local Realtors and provides information about homes for sale in the United States, Canada, and Australia. 

Realtor.com listings are linked to over 580 regional Multiple Listing Services(MLS), which are affiliated with the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and adhere to the Realtor Code of Ethics.

Redfin

Redfin is a real estate website that provides assistance for purchasing and selling properties. In addition, Redfin acts as a brokerage, with agents who are compensated based on client happiness rather than commission. 

Trulia

Trulia is a real estate website company based in San Francisco and is owned by the Zillow group.

It offers online advertising solutions for residential properties, commercial properties, rentals, and vacation rentals. The company also provides detailed information on schools, neighborhoods, crime rates, and other local amenities to help people make informed decisions

FSBO.com

FSBO.com is a one-stop site for all things related to selling your home yourself without an agent. There are numerous guides and tips on how to calculate the home value, advertise and sell your property FSBO successfully. The website also offers free listing ads in over 50 U.S cities so you can easily upload pictures of your home and attract interested buyers quickly without paying any commissions.

Facebook Marketplace

Facebook Marketplace is an online platform that allows you to buy and sell items in your local area. Facebook sellers can upload pictures of their homes for sale along with a description, asking value, and contact information. The listing can then be shared on the user’s timeline or in relevant groups so others may see it too. 

Craigslist

Craigslist is an online classified and forum website that allows home sellers to post, search, and read ads about various topics including jobs, housing sales/rental listings. The purpose of this marketplace is to create a community where everyone can share their thoughts on different subjects without having any barriers like location or age limit in place.

Nextdoor

Nextdoor is a social network website based in San Francisco. 

You can use it to stay in touch with neighbors, learn about community events, sell items online, or even find local babysitters and pet sitters. Nextdoor has become increasingly popular among sellers because the website allows them to post listings of homes without an agent free of charge!

Can you sell your house online for free?

Nothing in this world is ever truly free, as the saying goes. Many websites may advertise free services for selling a property.  The Reality: The sellers will be charged some form of cost either directly or through the proceeds from the sale of their property.

Sellers may sell fast online by hyper-focusing their marketing on obtaining a cash offer. Because it adds another fee to either the seller or the cash buyer, an agent is rarely needed. Despite the fact that these purchasers occasionally use the MLS, attracting these buyers via any of the other mentioned websites would be your best bet to sell fast.

Summary

So, those are some of the best websites and tips for selling your home online in 2022. Whether you’re looking to avoid commission costs or just want to reach a wider audience, there’s definitely an option out there for you. In the end, you should know that selling your property online is not as easy as it may seem at first glance. 

However, with a little effort and study, you should be able to complete a home sale in no time. A significant amount of your property sale will be handled through digital tools and internet marketing, whether you sell to a direct buyer or list your property with a realtor. It’s crucial to research your alternatives before starting your home sale journey so that you can make an educated decision about how to proceed.


Find a Houston Real Estate Investor | Ricky Pok | Wabi Sabi Realty Group

As always, it is important to do your due diligence when deciding to work with someone regarding selling your house. I started Wabi Sabi Realty Group as a way to help distressed clients that I couldn’t do otherwise while I was working as a mortgage lender. I was always troubled about how we had to decline or pawn off clients just because they were facing a situation that became way too complicated.

At Wabi Sabi Realty Group, we buy homes in any condition for all cash, without any fees or inspections, and have years of experience in the Houston, TX market. We are also dedicated to seeing all transactions through and are willing to invest upfront on transactions to make sure there are no complications during the home selling process.

If you or someone you know may be dealing with an issue that may require a real estate investor, please do not hesitate to reach out. Even if you believe that a real estate agent may be better suited, still feel free to reach out and I can definitely put you in contact with the top agents in your local market. For more information about how we can assist you, please give us a call at 281-306-5721 or fill out the form. We will be happy to talk to you about how we can buy your house for cash and close at a time that is convenient for you

Areas We Serve

Baytown, Conroe, Cypress, Deer Park, Galveston, Houston, Humble, League City, Missouri City, Pasadena, Spring and Sugarland, Texas.

Get More Info On Options To Sell Your Home...

Selling a property in today's market can be confusing. Connect with us or submit your info below and we'll help guide you through your options.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.