Steps to Listing Your Twin Cities Home

Thinking about selling your home but not sure where to start?

For many homeowners, the hardest part isn’t actually putting the house on the market. It’s figuring out what needs to happen before the For Sale sign goes in the yard.

Should you paint? Replace the carpet? Update the kitchen? Declutter first? How much could your home sell for? And after commissions, mortgage payoff and other selling expenses, how much might you actually walk away with?

That’s where having a plan makes everything easier.

I’m Myra Jensen with BRIX Real Estate, and I help homeowners throughout the Twin Cities prepare, price and market their homes for sale. We can start well before you’re ready to list so you have time to make smart decisions without feeling rushed.

Here’s what the process typically looks like.

1. Decide If Selling Is the Right Move

Selling a home is a big decision, and sometimes the first conversation isn’t about how to sell. It’s about whether selling makes sense for you right now.

Think about what you want your next chapter to look like. Maybe you want less maintenance, one-level living, more land, a lake home, a different community or simply a home that fits your life better.

Once you know what you’re moving toward, the selling decisions become much easier.

2. Find Out What Your Home May Be Worth

Before making expensive improvements or major decisions, get a realistic idea of your home's current market value.

I’ll look at recent sales, competing homes, your location, condition, updates, features and current Twin Cities market conditions to help determine a realistic pricing range.

Online estimates can be interesting, but they can't walk through your house and see the things that make it different from the house down the street.

3. Estimate Your Potential Proceeds

Your home's selling price isn't the same as the amount you'll have available for your next move.

If you have a mortgage, find out your approximate payoff amount. From there, we can estimate selling expenses and prepare a seller net sheet so you have a better idea of what you could walk away with after the sale.

This can be especially important if the proceeds from your current home will help fund your next home or other plans.

4. Decide What to Fix, Update or Leave Alone

This is one of the biggest reasons I recommend talking with a real estate agent before you start preparing your home.

Not every project is worth doing.

Some relatively inexpensive changes can make a noticeable difference in how buyers perceive your home. Other projects may cost thousands of dollars without adding enough value to justify them.

Before you start ripping out countertops or ordering new flooring, let's talk about what today's buyers are actually looking for and where your time and money are best spent.

5. Prepare and Stage Your Home

Once we know what needs to be done, we'll create a plan for getting your home market-ready.

That might include decluttering, rearranging furniture, touching up paint, making minor repairs, improving curb appeal or simply removing a few things so your home's best features stand out.

The goal isn't to make your home look like nobody lives there. It's to help buyers easily imagine themselves living there.

6. Determine the Right Listing Price

Pricing is part strategy and part market data.

We'll look at comparable sales, current competition, buyer activity and your home's unique features to determine the best pricing strategy.

No real estate agent can guarantee exactly what a buyer will ultimately pay. The market makes that decision. Our job is to position your home so buyers see its value and have a reason to act.

7. Create the Marketing Plan

Marketing shouldn't begin after your home hits the MLS.

Before your listing goes live, we’ll have a plan for how your home will be presented to buyers. That includes professional-quality photography, compelling listing remarks, online exposure and additional marketing appropriate for your property.

Your first impression online matters. For many buyers, your home's photos and listing are the first showing.

8. Go Live and Start Showing

Once everything is ready, your home will be listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and distributed to major real estate websites where buyers are searching.

Then the showings begin.

I'll help you understand what to expect, how to prepare for showings, evaluate buyer feedback and adjust our strategy if the market tells us we need to.

You Don't Have to Be Ready to Sell Yet

One of the best times to meet with me is before you're ready to put your home on the market.

If you're thinking about selling sometime in the next few months, or even next year, we can walk through your home together and create a simple plan.

You'll know what your home may be worth, what improvements are worth considering, what you can probably skip, and what steps you'll need to take when you're ready.

There’s no pressure to list your home just because we meet.

Thinking about selling a home in the Twin Cities?

Schedule a complimentary home selling, pricing and preparation consultation with Myra Jensen at BRIX Real Estate.

Call or text 763-227-0618, or use the contact form below to get started.

Your Life. Your Way. You're Home.