THE SELLER’S GUIDE
1. Let’s Get Your Property Ready
Preparation is the most important step to selling property. We’ll guide you through every step of what needs to happen and make sure that no detail gets overlooked.
Preparation includes:
Cleaning and de-cluttering (à la Marie Kondo!).
Inspections, repairs, renovations, improvements and landscaping. We’ll advise you on what will result in the most bang for your buck and help you coordinate getting the work done.
Making your property look as attractive as possible. We’ll coordinate beautiful staging as necessary.
We’ll research market conditions to help you determine the best pricing strategy.
2. Listing Disclosures
MHRECO utilizes an online platform to simplify the process of providing disclosures to buyers and their agents.
Outlined below are the most common disclosures for selling a single-family home in the Bay Area. Please feel free to reach out for more information — we’re happy to share examples of these documents.
Documents - Bay Area
Disclosure Regarding Real Estate Agency Relationship
Possible Representation of More than One Buyer or Seller
Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement
Agent Visual Inspection Disclosure
Seller Property Questionnaire
Market Conditions Advisory
Wire Fraud Advisory
Buyer's Inspection Advisory
Statewide Buyer and Seller Advisory
Seller’s Affidavit of Nonforeign Status
Lead-Based Paint Disclosure and Addendum
Water-conserving Plumbing Fixtures and Carbon Monoxide Detector Notice
Water Heater and Smoke Detector Statement of Compliance
Wood-burning Fireplaces
Notice of Your Supplemental Property Tax Bill
Megans Law Database
Combined Hazard Disclosure Booklets
County Disclosures and Disclaimers Advisory
City Report
Natural Hazards
CA Tax
Residential Earthquake Hazards Report
Preliminary Title Report
Property Inspection Reports
General Property
Roof
Structural Pest
Miscellaneous Disclosures
MLS Public Information Prepared by Listing Broker/Agent
Evidence of Insurance
Building/Floor Plan Sketch
Square Footage and Lot Size
Details of Historic Repairs, Improvements, and Additions
3. Marketing, Showings & Open Houses
We’ll coordinate cutting-edge, eye-catching photography and video. We work with only the best.
When your home is ready, we’ll create a custom site and list your home for sale on the MLS. We’ll make sure the listing looks great on all major online platforms (Realtors.com, Redfin.com, Zillow.com, etc.) including links to the custom site. Then we’ll schedule private showings and open houses.
Past marketing campaigns include:
4. Reviewing Offers
We’ll meet with you to review offers and discuss potential counteroffers.
5. Escrow
When you’ve accepted an offer, the escrow process begins. If the Buyers are paying all cash with no contingencies, escrow can close within a week or so. If the Buyers are working with a lender, escrow may take 21-45 days, and the following major milestones will happen:
Initial deposit: The Buyers will submit their good faith deposit within a few days after offer acceptance.
Appraisal: An appraisal will be scheduled right away. The appraiser typically requires 2-3 days to provide their report, then the Buyer’s lender will take another few days to review the report and finalize underwriting.
Inspections: The Buyers may want to perform their own inspections. Under normal market conditions, this contingency period is typically 2-3 weeks. When inspections are completed, the Buyers may request repairs to be performed and/or credits paid when escrow closes.
If the Buyers make any requests for repairs and improvements, we’ll advise you on what’s appropriate based on market conditions and what we feel the buyer’s will or won’t accept. We’ll advocate for your interests to save you as much time, money and hassle as possible.
Title clearance: We’ll coordinate with the title company to clear up any issues.
Property cleaning: We’ll coordinate a housecleaning service after the stagers have removed everything.
Final walk-through: At the Buyer’s discretion, they may want to perform a final visual inspection.
Resources
Chicago Title’s California Seller’s Guide - nice summary of the sales process, with particular attention paid to the escrow process and title insurance.
Understanding Preliminary Title Reports - the CA Land Title Association’s summary of FAQs.
“What is Title Insurance?” - short video by Fidelity National Title.
‘10 Most Common Title Problems’ - First American’s summary, including a short video.
6. Closing
We’ll obtain all closing documents as early as possible for you to review.
The escrow company will coordinate signing with you, which can happen at their office or a convenient location for you with a mobile notary.
Documents are typically signed a couple days prior to closing day. After the Buyers have signed their documents and the County office has recorded the sale, we’ll notify you that the deal has officially closed!
Documents