There's a New Way To Sell Your House–And It Will Save You a Lot of Time
Of all the trials and tribulations in life, selling a house might be among the most challenging. Some people get lucky, receive several offers near (or even above) asking price, and sell their home in mere days; others have a property that sits on the market for weeks, months, and even years. Some people are in no rush to move and can let a for-sale home linger on the market, but others need to move ASAP—especially if it’s because of a job change or other timely issue.
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Many decisions in life—like buying furniture that requires assembly versus getting no assembly required furniture delivered—come down to a matter of saving money versus convenience. People can choose to put up with discomfort or a challenge to save some money or take a financial loss to be less stressed, and now the same is true for selling a home, too.
Selling a home traditionally requires making some updates, staging a home, doing showings, and waiting for an offer, regardless of whether a real estate agent is involved, and the system hasn’t changed for decades. Now, there are services that cut out all that for the home seller—for a price, of course.
Zillow Offers, new from the real estate site, makes home sellers a cash offer based on a quick questionnaire and some photos of the property. The Zillow Offers team reviews the information and calculates a fair price for eligible homes within a few days. Home sellers have no obligation to accept the offer—and there’s no negotiating if the offer seems far too low—but if they do accept, they get to pick a closing date that is most convenient and start packing up. The Zillow Offers team takes care of the inspection, handles any repairs and updates, and puts the home on the market the traditional way, through an agent.
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The upside is that selling is a sure thing for eligible homes. Home sellers get to move when they want, without a lingering home sale, home remodeling costs, and a renovation checklist weighing them down. The downside is that Zillow charges a fee for the service—and home sellers might not get as much for their home as they would if they went about selling the traditional way, where they could negotiate for a higher sale price. Home sellers can request a Zillow Offer if their home is already on the market but not getting much interest. Zillow Offers is currently available in select markets, but it’s quickly expanding; more information is available on the website.
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Zillow isn’t the first to offer this sort of service—Opendoor has been in operation with a similar concept since 2014—but Zillow’s adoption of a more convenient home selling process marks a major shift in the real estate world toward a process that’s less stressful for those willing to spend a little more. Does accepting a Zillow Offer completely erase the cost of selling a house? No—but it certainly makes it a lot easier, especially for anyone looking to get out of their current home on their schedule.
