It is completely natural to feel anxiety surrounding buying a new home and/or selling your existing home.  Even when things all go smoothly, it still is a major undertaking and can cause a lot of stress.  I thought I’d review some things I’ve seen and learned over the years to help anyone suffering from fear surrounding moving.

Some common fears I hear from my sellers are…

1. What if my house doesn’t sell?
2. What if I don’t sell it for the amount I need it to?
3. Buyers won’t like the condition of my home so won’t I have to make a lot of updates?
4. What happens if the deal falls apart after inspections?
5. What if we can’t find a place to move into after we sell?
6. I don’t want strangers in my house.
7. What if someone wants to see it when we don’t want to?
8. What happens if it doesn’t appraise?
9. Because of the current interest rates, what if buyers can’t afford our home? 

I could extend this list but I think you understand the fears that people face.  There are many tactics we, as agents, use to counteract many of these fears.  For example, “Can the buyer afford our home?”…when we receive offers on your property, one of the things we look at is their pre-approval or proof of funds.  Are they using a reputable lender?  I often will call their lender and get information from them on how secure they feel they are.  Another common question I receive, especially in this hot market, is what happens if our house doesn’t appraise for what we have it under contract for.  There are options if the home doesn’t appraise.  #1, upfront we could negotiate that it is not contingent on appraisal.  In this market, it is common to see this contingency removed.  Can the buyer pull from other funds to make up the difference and get a reduced loan amount?  If the contingency is still there and buyer cannot come up with the funds, then you can either negotiate the price down or relist it.  In a hot market, having ready to go backup offers is something to consider.  

When is comes to buyer fears…

1. Can I afford to move?
2. What if I pay too much for the home in this current market?
3. What if I get under contract and find something I like better later?
4. Buying seems so complicated and I don’t have time for it.
5. I don’t have money for a down payment.
6. Should I wait for prices to go down?
7. What if my credit is bad?

For buyers, so many fears surround their finances and the market conditions.  Those fears are very real and legitimate because we don’t always have the answers on what the market it going to do or what interest rates will rise to.  However, surrounding yourself with professionals that ask the right questions and provide you with all the information is the best course of action to take to ease your fears.  Most fears arise from the unknown and using an experienced agent, lender, and title company should help ease those fears because, most likely, we’ve seen it all.  

My advice?  Do your research, know your finances, and hire an experienced lender and real estate agent you get along with and that communicates with you every step of the way.