Selling · Middle Tennessee
How selling actually works
From the first conversation to the closing table, in order, with an honest account of what each step is for. No promises about outcomes.
The road, in order
9 steps. The timing on each one is approximate, because your lender and the other side set the real pace.
We price it against what actually closed
Before anything else
Not what the neighbors are asking. What sold, what it sold for, and how long it took. Asking prices are opinions and closed prices are evidence, and only one of the two gets used here.
We prepare it, in the order that pays
Usually two to four weeks
Paint, light, clutter and smell come before anything expensive. There is a short list of work that returns more than it costs and a long list that does not, and the second list is where most sellers spend first.
Photography and the rest of the package
A few days
A professional shoot on a day with the right light, after the preparation and not before it. The photographs are what decides whether anyone comes to see it in person, which makes them the listing rather than a formality attached to it.
It goes live
Day one
The listing hits the MLS and syndicates out from there. The first week carries more attention than any week that follows, which is the whole reason nothing goes live until it is ready to be seen.
Showings, and what the feedback is worth
The first two weeks
Traffic with no offers is a price conversation. No traffic at all is a different conversation. I tell you which one you are having rather than letting a month pass while we hope.
Offers, and what we compare besides price
When they come
Financing type, how much is actually underwritten, what is contingent on another sale, the closing date, and how much room the buyer left themselves to renegotiate later. The highest number is not reliably the strongest offer.
Inspection, and the repair conversation
Usually days one to ten
Most inspections turn up problems because most houses have them. What matters is which items are safety or structure and which are a buyer asking. Those get answered differently.
Appraisal and their loan
Usually days ten to thirty
The buyer’s lender sends an appraiser, and the file goes through underwriting. This is the other place a deal can wobble, and it is mostly out of both our hands, which is exactly why the price had to be defensible in the first place.
Closing
The last week
Final walkthrough from their side, then signing. Funds move, the deed records, and the keys change hands. Wire instructions never change by email. Call the title company and confirm the numbers out loud.
Pricing is the whole ballgame
Everything else on this page matters less than this. A house priced correctly attracts attention in its first two weeks, which is when the most motivated buyers see it. A house priced above the market sits, gets stale, and eventually sells for less than it would have if it had been priced right on day one.
The temptation is to hire whoever tells you the highest number. That agent is not helping you. The number I give you comes with the comparable sales behind it, and the decision stays yours.
Preparation, in the order that pays
Not every repair returns its cost. The ones that consistently matter are the ones a buyer can see and the ones an inspector will find anyway.
Deep cleaning and decluttering return more than almost any renovation. Paint is the cheapest visible improvement there is. Beyond that, I would rather walk your specific house and tell you what to skip, because the most common way sellers lose money before listing is spending it on the wrong things.
Photography is not a formality
Nearly every buyer sees your house on a screen before they see it in person, and the photographs decide whether they ever do. This is not the place to save money.
Get everything done before the photographer arrives, not after. Photos taken mid-preparation are the ones that stay on the internet for the rest of the listing.
Showings, offers and what to actually compare
The highest number on the page is not always the best offer, and sellers get burned by this regularly.
What matters alongside price is the financing, the size of the earnest money deposit, which contingencies are attached, the proposed closing date, and whether the buyer needs to sell something else first. An offer twenty thousand higher that falls apart in three weeks costs you far more than the twenty thousand.
- Price, and how it compares to what the appraisal is likely to support
- Financing type and whether the pre-approval is underwritten
- Earnest money, and how serious a number it is
- Inspection, appraisal and financing contingencies
- Timing, and whether it fits when you actually need to move
Inspection and appraisal, the two places deals wobble
After a contract is signed, the buyer inspects and the lender appraises. These are the two points where an agreed deal most often has to be renegotiated.
Having built, I read an inspection report differently than most. When repair requests come back, I can tell you quickly which items are genuine and which are a buyer taking a swing. That conversation is where a deal is saved or lost.
Common questions
What should I fix before listing?
Less than you think. The things a buyer sees, and the things an inspector will find anyway. Cleaning, decluttering and paint outperform most renovations on return. Before you spend on anything larger, let me walk the house.
How long will it take to sell?
Price, condition and location decide it. What I can give you is what comparable homes in your specific area have actually been taking recently. That is a real answer rather than a comforting one.
Should I sell before I buy?
Either order can be structured, and each carries a different risk. Worth an hour at your kitchen table before you list anything.
The bottom line
I would rather give you the honest number with the evidence behind it than the flattering one that costs you money in month three.